Top 10 Greatest New York Knicks

The Knicks have beaten the Los Angeles Lakers and now the defending World Champion Dallas Mavericks. They are back up to .500. Amar'e Stoudemire is playing again, and well. Carmelo Anthony may be back for their next game. And then there's this other guy...

Jeremy Lin has put more life into Knick fandom than anyone since the arrival of Patrick Ewing in 1985. It remains to be seen if he can keep this up, but the fact that Stoudemire and Anthony are publicly supporting him is a good sign.

Lin, of course, is a new arrival and thus does not make this list. But that doesn't mean he won't make a future list.

Top 10 Greatest New York Knicks

Honorable Mention to the Knick members of the Basketball Hall of Fame who didn't quite make this list: Tom Gola, Jerry Lucas, and coaches Red Holzman, Hubie Brown and Pat Riley. Also to 2 early Knicks who would have been on this list prior to the Riley-Ewing era: Richie Guerin, and Carl Braun, who was seen practicing free throws by broadcaster Marty Glickman, who heard Braun say, "Swish!" every time a free throw hit nothing but net. Glickman incorporated "Swish!" into his broadcasts; my generation didn't know that at the time, thinking it had been thought up by WABC-Channel 7, later WCBS-Channel 2, sports anchor Warner Wolf. And, also, Honorable Mention to broadcasters Glickman, Marv Albert and John Andariese.

10. Dick McGuire, Number 15, guard, 1949-57. His brother Al, a rugged defensive forward and Knick teammate, became much more famous as the Marquette University coach who won the 1977 National Championship and then became a beloved broadcaster. But "Dick the Knick" came out of Far Rockaway in Queens and became an early NBA sensation. Like his friendly adversary Bob Cousy of the Boston Celtics, he was a dribbling wizard and a sensational passer. It took a long time for him to get into the Hall of Fame, but he and Al did both live to see it.

After retirement, he became the Knicks' coach, and wasn't very good at it, but was moved to the position of scouting director. He, his replacement as coach Red Holzman, and his predecessor as coach and now general manager Eddie Donovan built the Knick champions of the early Seventies. Number 15 has been retired for both McGuire and Earl Monroe.

9. Harry Gallatin, Number 11, center, 1948-57. At a time when a man 6-foot-6 could still play center, Harry the Horse set an NBA record (since broken)of 610 consecutive games and helped them reach 3 straight NBA Finals, 1951-53. Hall of Fame, although his number has not been retired.

8. Bernard King, Number 30, guard, 1982-87. Major, major what-if. The Brooklyn native, Fort Hamilton H.S. graduate, brother of future Net and Knick Albert King, and University of Tennessee teammate of future Knick player and executive Ernie Grunfeld (UT was then known as the Ernie & Bernie Show), was every bit the media darling that Jeremy Lin now is, and without the benefit of the Internet (or even much hype from the still-new ESPN).

In 1984, 'Nard scored 50 points in back-to-back games in Texas, first against San Antonio and then against Dallas. He put the Knicks on his back and led them into 2 great Playoff series, first beating the Detroit Pistons (including winning Game 5 in Detroit), then falling to the Boston Celtics. On Christmas 1984, he set a Garden record (since broken by Kobe Bryant) by scoring 60 points against the Nets -- although the Nets still won the game.

But in that season, injuries took a good Knicks team and made them awful. It was like Arsenal, only worse. The Knicks finished 24-58, putting them in position to possibly draft Patrick Ewing. Then, on March 23, 1985, at Kemper Arena, in one of the Kings' last home games before leaving Kansas City for Sacramento, King jumped to block a shot by Reggie Theus, tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his knee, yelling, "Oh, damn! Oh, damn!" and crumpling to the floor, slapping the hardwood in horrendous pain. This began a season-ending 12-game losing streak for the Knicks.

At age 28, King's career seemed over. Somehow, he made a comeback, first with the Knicks, then with the Washington Bullets, and scored just under 20,000 points in his career. He is not in the Hall of Fame, but he should be.

7. Charles Oakley, Number 34, forward, 1988-98. Ewing got the headlines, but the Oak was the heart and soul, and the blood and guts, of the 1990s Knicks -- Harry Carson to Ewing's Lawrence Taylor. He remains the team's all-time leader in offensive rebounds.

He has not yet been honored with the retirement of his number or election to the Hall of Fame. However, all the Knicks listed below have been elected to the Hall of Fame, and the team has retired all of their numbers.

6. Bill Bradley, Number 24, forward, 1967-77. As good as he was smart (Princeton, Rhodes Scholar), he was a balanced player who could shoot, pass, rebound and play defense equally well. He may not have been as good as Bob Cousy before him or Magic Johnson after him, but like them, he seemed to know where everyone was at all times, and where he could put the ball.

John McPhee, a native of Princeton and fellow graduate of Princeton University, wrote a New Yorker article about Bradley while he was at Princeton (including a game where he set a collegiate scoring record at the old Madison Square Garden), and gave it a perfect title for a story about Bradley, one that would have worked equally well for Cooz or Magic, and was later expanded into a book that included Bradley's pro career: A Sense of Where You Are.

Bradley lived in New Jersey during his playing days, and a year after retirement ran as a Democrat for the U.S. Senate, and won 3 terms. Like football star turned Republican Congressman Jack Kemp, Bradley was constantly being touted as a candidate for President, mainly due to his celebrity and looks, rather than his qualifications. Like Kemp, he never won his party's nomination for President: He ran only once, in 2000, and got crushed in the Primaries by Al Gore. Considering his background, especially his coaching by Red Holzman and the way he worked with his Knick teammates, I'm not at all surprised that Bradley became one of the most admired Senators of his time -- but I'm not sure he would have made a good President.

5. Dave DeBusschere, Number 22, forward, 1968-74. "Double D" was a sensational athlete who also pitched briefly for the Chicago White Sox -- if I'm not mistaken, Danny Ainge is the only man to play both in MLB and the NBA since. As a Detroit Piston, where he was briefly the youngest coach and one of the last player-coaches in NBA history, DeBusschere scored the first basket at what was then called "the New Madison Square Garden Center."

The next season, the Knicks got him from the Pistons for Walt Bellamy (who, though a great player, couldn't seem to play with Willis Reed) and Howie Komives. This trade made the Knicks, as DeBusschere was the perfect guy to play on a Red Holzman-led team, good on offense, great on defense, patient, gutsy, and smart as hell. The Knicks wouldn't have won either of their 2 titles without him.

He would go on to be the Knicks' coach and general manager. In the latter role, he provided his best-remembered moment, pumping his fist as it was announced that the Indiana Pacers were getting the 2nd pick in the 1985 NBA Draft Lottery, meaning the Knicks would get the first, meaning the Knicks would get Patrick Ewing. DeBusschere already has a Knicks Number 33 jersey with Ewing's name on it in his jacket pocket. He also did commercials for Lee Myles transmission specialists, and was mentioned in an episode of Mad About You, where Paul (Paul Reiser) told Jamie (Helen Hunt) that their new answering machine's code was 422: "So that's 4, and Dave DeBusschere's jersey." But Jamie couldn't remember, and walked around the Union Square subway station asking people, "Do you know Dave the Butcher?"

Sadly, Double D died of a heart attack in 2003, just 62 years old. He, and all the players listed below him, were named to the NBA's 50th Anniversary 50 Greatest Players in 1996.

4. Earl Monroe, Number 15, guard, 1971-80. "I dream about a lot of women," Walt Frazier supposedly said, "but Earl Monroe is the only man I dream about." Why? Because the flashy guard for the Baltimore Bullets was so hard to cover, he became a nightmare for Clyde. He was already known as "Earl the Pearl" and "Black Jesus." At John Bartram High School in his native Philadelphia, he was known as "Thomas Edison," because he always seemed to be inventing new moves -- this despite Philly already having a high school named for Edison.

The Knicks decided, "If you can't beat 'em, make 'em join you." So they sent Mike Riordan, Dave Stallworth and cash to Baltimore -- possibly leading to that franchise being moved to Washington -- and "The Rolls-Royce Backcourt" was formed. Newspaper sports columnists and the early sports-talk-radio hosts wondered if Clyde and the Pearl could play together, or if "they will need two basketballs." They needn't have worried: Together, they got the Knicks into the 1972 and '73 Finals, winning it all in 1973. The Pearl turned out to be the last remaining Knick from an NBA Championship team. He still is.

3. Patrick Ewing, Number 33, center, 1985-2000. He’s the most-hyped Knick ever, and the all-time leading scorer in the history of professional basketball in the Tri-State Area. So why is he Number 3 on this list, not Number 1? I’ll give you 15 reasons why: The 15 times he did NOT lead the Knicks to an NBA Championship.

When the 1985 NBA Draft was fixed so that the Knicks could get the top pick, the unstoppable center from Boston and Washington’s Georgetown University, the question was not IF Ewing would lead the Knicks to a title, it was HOW MANY. By the late 1990s, when it still hadn’t happened, he began to guarantee titles. It never happened. He is the most spectacular failure in the history of Tri-State Area sports – although I shudder to think what Ranger fans would have done to Mark Messier if HIS guarantee hadn’t come true.

2. Willis Reed, Number 19, center, 1964-74. The Captain -- forever the Captain of his team, the way Lou Gehrig will always be "the Captain of the Yankees," Keith Hernandez for the Mets, Harry Carson for the Giants, Mark Messier for the Rangers, Denis Potvin for the Islanders and Scott Stevens for the Devils.

He was probably headed for the Hall of Fame even before Game 7 in 1970, but that game, even though he only scored 2 baskets (the first 2 of the game), made him a legend. You have to remember: The Knicks, much like the team they were playing that day, the Lakers, seemed snakebit. They'd been in the NBA Finals 3 times, losing them all. Of all the teams then in the New York Tri-State Area, all but one, the Nets of the recently-formed ABA, had won a World Championship. The Islanders and Devils hadn't arrived yet. The Yankees had won 20 World Series. The Giants had won 4 NFL Championships. The Rangers had won 3 Stanley Cups, although their last was 30 years earlier (which is now a bit shorter than the Knicks' current drought). Incredibly, 2 of the newer teams, the Jets and then the Mets, had won titles in the preceding 16 months. This was embarrassing. The Knicks needed that title.

And without Willis, it wouldn't have happened. Once he limped onto the court for the pregame shootaround, despite having such luminaries as Wilt Chamberlain, Jerry West and Elgin Baylor, the Lakers were beaten. Willis didn't do much more than that. But he'd done more in just that walk than Patrick Ewing did in 15 years at The Garden.

1. Walt Frazier, Number 10, guard, 1967-77. People remember Game 7 of the 1970 NBA Finals as “The Willis Reed Game.” It’s easy to forget that Frazier had his best game on that amazing night at The Garden.

He was called “Clyde” because he reminded someone of the way Warren Beatty dressed in the film Bonnie and Clyde. But Clyde Frazier never killed anything except opponents’ hopes, and he never robbed anybody of anything except the basketball.

It was a special time, with Tom Seaver, Joe Namath, and Frazier, each in their own way, being parts of it. Clyde and Broadway Joe seemed to move the culture, while Tom Terrific seemed to be great in spite of it. Clyde helped bring a 2nd title, and has since become a great analyst on Knicks’ broadcasts, and remains a style icon – witness his ads with Keith Hernandez for Just For Men hair coloring.

I’m not going to tell you that Walt Frazier is the coolest man who ever lived. But if you already believe that, I’m not going to try to change your mind.

Farewell, A.J.

A.J. Burnett pitched 3 seasons for the Yankees. Although his performances in the latter 2 weren't so hot, the Yankees did get into the Playoffs in all 3 seasons.

And, unlike a lot of Yankees -- some who were in serious decline, some who moped their way out of town, some who were screwed over by management -- his last game, Game 4 of the ALDS, on the road, with our backs to the wall, he pitched 6 strong innings, and left with a lead the team held.

The enduring memory of A.J. is likely to be from May 2009 onward, the shaving-cream "pies" he gave to players as they were interviewed after getting walkoff hits. I guess that task passes to another pitcher now: It could be Nick Swisher, who's got the personality to do it, but since he's a hitter and likely to be in the dugout for a walkoff hit, if not on base or even getting said hit, it shouldn't be him.

It now appears that A.J. is going to the Pittsburgh Pirates. In return, the Yankees are getting Diego Moreno, a 25-year-old righthanded reliever, who has yet to appear beyond Double-A ball, but supposedly can throw 97 miles an hour; and Exicardo Cayones, a 20-year-old lefty outfielder whose highest level so far has been short-season A-ball. Both are from Venezuela.

I don't know if this trade will work out, but it does get rid of a big contract, and it also clears up the rotation somewhat:

1. CC Sabathia
2. Ivan Nova
3. Michael Pineda
4. Phil Hughes
5. Freddy Garcia

Actually, the middle three are probably interchangeable at this point. And, theoretically, Joba Chamberlain could still start, in case one goes down to injury or loses his effectiveness. Dellin Betances could also be a factor.

So, saying goodbye to A.J. Burnett is not a bad day for the Yankees.

Still, in a weird way, I'm gonna miss the goof.

Living Members of the Baseball Hall of Fame as of February 17, 2012

For this list, effective yesterday with the death of Gary Carter, I am counting all players, managers, executives (including owners) and broadcasters who were with a team for a significant period of time.

Many, as you’ll see, qualify under more than one team. Players are listed by chronological order of when they arrived, followed by managers, executives and broadcasters (in each case, unless they can also be listed as players). Ties in the rankings will be broken by who had more players, as opposed to players + men in other categories, then by more non-broadcasters.

1. Baltimore Orioles, 10: Brooks Robinson, Luis Aparicio, Frank Robinson, Jim Palmer, Eddie Murray, Cal Ripken, Roberto Alomar, Earl Weaver (manager), Lee MacPhail (executive), Jon Miller (broadcaster). Rafael Palmeiro is now eligible, but he’s never getting in.

2. St. Louis Cardinals, 9: Stan Musial, Red Schoendienst (player and manager), Bob Gibson, Lou Brock, Steve Carlton, Orlando Cepeda, Ozzie Smith, Bruce Sutter, Whitey Herzog (manager and executive). Mark McGwire probably won’t be added here, either.

3. New York Yankees, 7: Yogi Berra (player and manager), Whitey Ford, Reggie Jackson, Goose Gossage, Dave Winfield, Wade Boggs, Lee MacPhail (executive). No, despite their HOF-awarded broadcasting careers, you can’t count Jerry Coleman or Tony Kubek. I thought about counting Rickey Henderson, but decided against it. Joe Torre is not yet eligible.

4. Cincinnati Reds, 7: Frank Robinson, Tony Perez, Johnny Bench, Joe Morgan. Tom Seaver, Barry Larkin, Marty Brennaman (broadcaster). This total, of course, does not include Pete Rose.

5. San Francisco Giants, 7: Willie Mays, Orlando Cepeda, Willie McCovey, Juan Marichal, Gaylord Perry, Lon Simmons and Jon Miller (broadcasters). All of the Giants’ San Francisco HOFers are still alive as of May 17, 2011. Mays and Monte Irvin would qualify for the New York edition of the Giants, and Irvin is the only living HOFer who would qualify for a Negro League team (the Newark Eagles).

6. Boston Red Sox, 6: Bobby Doerr, Carl Yastrzemski, Carlton Fisk, Jim Rice, Dennis Eckersley, Wade Boggs. (EDIT: I had the late Dick Williams included here, and for the A's -- but, oddly, not for the Padres, whom he managed to their first Pennant.)

7. Chicago Cubs, 6: Ernie Banks, Billy Williams, Ferguson Jenkins, Bruce Sutter, Ryne Sandberg, Andre Dawson. Ron Santo finally got in, but, alas, not during his lifetime.

8. San Diego Padres, 5: Dave Winfield, Rollie Fingers, Goose Gossage, Tony Gwynn, Jerry Coleman (broadcaster). Hard to believe the Padres are ahead of the Dodgers on this list, but if Duke Snider were still alive, as he was a year ago, the Dodgers would still be ahead.

9. Oakland Athletics, 5: Reggie Jackson, Rollie Fingers, Rickey Henderson, Dennis Eckersley, Lon Simmons (broadcaster). Don’t expect Mark McGwire to be added anytime soon. And, if the A's do move, as now appears likely, their total will be returned to zero.

10. Los Angeles Dodgers, 5: Sandy Koufax, Don Sutton, Tommy Lasorda (manager), Vin Scully and Jamie Jarrin (broadcasters). With the death of Duke Snider, there are no more living players elected as Brooklyn Dodgers, although Koufax and Lasorda did pitch for them in Brooklyn, and Scully started his broadcasting career there.

11. Philadelphia Phillies, 4: Jim Bunning, Steve Carlton, Mike Schmidt, Pat Gillick (executive). This list will probably one day include Ryan Howard, Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley and Roy Halladay – but, of course, they’ve got to be retired for 5 full seasons first.

12. Houston Astros, 4: Joe Morgan, Nolan Ryan, Gene Elston & Milo Hamilton (broadcasters). Jeff Bagwell became eligible this year, and Craig Biggio becomes eligible in 2013; they may end up getting elected together.

13. New York Mets, 4: Tom Seaver, Yogi Berra (manager), Ralph Kiner and the newly-elected Tim McCarver (broadcasters). So the Mets have the same number, despite losing Carter. No, you can’t count Willie Mays. Or Rickey Henderson. John Franco is eligible, and Mike Piazza becomes eligible in 2013.

14. Anaheim Angels, 3: Nolan Ryan, Reggie Jackson, Rod Carew.

15. Chicago White Sox, 3: Luis Aparicio, Goose Gossage, Carlton Fisk. Frank Thomas is not yet eligible.

16. Pittsburgh Pirates, 3: Ralph Kiner, Bill Mazeroski, Bert Blyleven.

17. Toronto Blue Jays, 3: Roberto Alomar, Paul Molitor, Pat Gillick (executive). Including Molitor was close, but they wouldn’t have won that ’93 World Series without him. However, considering they were there for only 1 season, even if they were World Championship seasons, you can’t count Dave Winfield (’92) or Rickey Henderson (’93).

18. Atlanta Braves, 3: Hank Aaron, Phil Niekro, Milo Hamilton (broadcaster). This number will grow once Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, John Smoltz and (possibly) Chipper Jones and Andruw Jones become eligible. Aaron and Red Schoendienst would qualify for the Milwaukee Braves.

19. Milwaukee Brewers, 3: Robin Yount, Paul Molitor, Rollie Fingers, Bob Uecker (broadcaster).

20. Kansas City Royals, 3: George Brett, Whitey Herzog (manager), Denny Matthews (broadcaster).

21. Texas Rangers, 2: Ferguson Jenkins, Nolan Ryan. Rafael Palmeiro is now eligible, but he’s never getting in. No, you can’t count Gaylord Perry.

22. Detroit Tigers, 2: Jim Bunning, Al Kaline.

23. Minnesota Twins, 2: Rod Carew, Bert Blyleven. Broadcaster Bob Wolff is the only living person who qualifies for their previous incarnation, the “original Washington Senators.”

24. Florida Marlins, 2: Felo Ramirez and Dave Van Horne (broadcasters). Carter had also broadcast for the Marlins. No, you can’t count Andre Dawson, although he is from Miami.

25. Cleveland Indians, 1: Roberto Alomar. When Bob Feller died late last year, it left one of baseball’s oldest franchises without a living HOFer, until Alomar was elected earlier this year.

26. Seattle Mariners, 1: Pat Gillick (executive). Randy Johnson will probably beat out Ken Griffey Jr. as their first player in the Hall, unless the voters really shift in favor of Edgar Martinez. Lou Piniella could get elected as a manager by the Veterans’ Committee (in which case the Reds could also claim him, and maybe the Yankees, but not the Rays or Cubs).

27. Arizona Diamondbacks, none. Randy Johnson will probably be the first, barring steroid evidence.

28. Tampa Bay Rays, none. No, you can’t count Wade Boggs.

29. Colorado Rockies, none. Unless Andres Galarraga or Larry Walker somehow get in, the number will remain at zero for a long time to come. The still-active Todd Helton may not make it, either. But Charlie Jones, who was their first radio announcer, won the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Pete Rozelle Award for broadcasting.

30. Washington Nationals, none. No, you can’t count their first manager, Frank Robinson. Nor can you count the Montreal Expos’ HOFers with them: Andre Dawson, Dave Van Horne (broadcaster), or the recently deceased Gary Carter and broadcaster Duke Snider.

Gary Carter, 1954-2012

August 9, 1981, Cleveland Municipal Stadium. The strike that shut down Major League Baseball for 2 months is over, and the season resumes with the All-Star Game.

The star of the game was the National League's starting catcher, who hit 2 home runs, and was on the cover of the next week's issue of Sports Illustrated, under the headline, "A BIG HAND FOR BASEBALL."

I wasn't happy with that, because I was a Yankee Fan and thus an American League fan. But I was glad baseball was back.

I never imagined the grief that catcher would bring me, although there was a chance, since his team, the Montreal Expos, came within one run of opposing the Yankees in that year's World Series. But it didn't happen, and the Expos never did play in a World Series -- and, as the Washington Nationals since 2005, still haven't.

*

Of course, there's grief, and then there's grief. True grief was when the man who had been the Yankees' catcher and Captain, Thurman Munson, was killed in a plane crash 2 years earlier.

"Sports grief" is something different, and should not be confused with the real thing. Not at all.

Besides, that Expos catcher, Gary Carter, always seemed to be trying to be a symbol of baseball joy, rather than grief. In the 1984-85 offseason, when the Mets showed their first signs of life in nearly a decade, they swung a big trade with the Expos, sending them 4 players -- only one of whom is likely to be familiar to you now, Hubie Brooks, a 3rd baseman and not at all a bad player -- for Carter.

Boom! On Opening Day 1985, Carter homered in the bottom of the 10th off former Met Neil Allen -- himself sent away in a blockbuster trade with Rick Ownbey for Keith Hernandez -- to beat the St. Louis Cardinals as Shea Stadium rocked. It ended up not mattering in the standings, as the Cards edged the Mets for the NL Eastern Division title.

But in 1986, the Mets were "inevitable." And yet, in the bottom of the 10th (again), in Game 6 of the World Series, the Mets were one out -- really, one pitch -- from elimination.

And Gary Carter was up next, and, defying the fact that he rarely used profanity, said afterward, “I wasn’t going to make the last fucking out of the World Series.” He didn't, smacking a single and keeping the Mets alive.

Somehow, those words don't seem right tonight. But, MET-aphorically, that's what Carter did. You know the rest: Kevin Mitchell singles Carter over to 2nd, Ray Knight singles home Carter and Mitchell over to 3rd, the Red Sox bring in Bob Stanley, he throws a wild pitch that almost hits Mookie Wilson, Mitchell scores, tie game, the Red Sox blew a 2-run lead with 2 outs and 2 strikes in the bottom of the 10th, and THEN Mookie, in the words of Vin Scully, the legendary Los Angeles Dodgers announcer doing the game for NBC, hits "a little roller up along first, behind the bag! It gets through Buckner! Here comes Knight and the Mets win it!"

And, of course, the Mets won Game 7, and won the World Series.

*

Carter slumped badly in 1987, but he managed to hit 324 home runs in his career, pretty good for a catcher whose home parks were the Montreal Olympic Stadium and Shea. After missing out a few times, he was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2003. His Number 8 was retired by the Expos before they moved, and while it hasn't been retired by the Mets, they did elect him to their team Hall of Fame. He broadcast for the Florida Marlins and managed in the minor leagues and in college ball.

Last year, he developed brain cancer, which also took New York baseball legends Bobby Murcer and Tug McGraw. Gary Edmund Carter died this afternoon at the age of 57.

He was known as "The Kid" for his eternally youthful outlook and enthusiasm -- and sometimes "The Camera Kid" for his apparent need to always be on TV. It's hard to believe someone so full of life is no longer on this plane of existence.

And, admit it: You never would have guessed that Carter would be the first member of the 1986 World Champion New York Mets to die. You figured it would be one of the substance abusers: Darryl Strawberry, Dwight Gooden, Keith Hernandez, or Lenny Dykstra. Or, at least, one of the guys who got fat: Hernandez, Ron Darling, Bob Ojeda. (Incredibly, the one who WAS fat, Sid Fernandez, has lost weight and looks pretty good.)

But no, Carter was the first to go. And that doesn't seem fair, no matter what team you support.

He was good for baseball. He was good for New York. He was good.

I didn't always like him... but that was just partisanship. Sports politics, if you prefer.

He earned all his accolades -- and some he didn't get, such as his Number 8 on the outfield wall at Citi Field alongside Casey Stengel's 37, Gil Hodges' 14, Tom Seaver's 41, Jackie Robinson's universally-retired 42, and the notation for Mets founder Bill Shea.

Gary Carter is now coming to bat. In Heaven -- or maybe a cornfield in Iowa.

Top 10 Greatest New York & New Jersey Nets

Last night, while the whole world drunk more of the Jeremy Lin Kool-Aid, the Nets lost 105-100. To the Memphis Grizzlies. At home.

They did this in spite of playing Whitney Houston’s rendition of “The Star-Spangled Banner” before the game. They did this in place of the Prudential Center hosting a public memorial for Whitney, as the Houston family wants a private funeral.

As the Nets prepare to move to Brooklyn in the fall, bringing an end to their New Jersey sojourn after 35 years (1977-2012), here are the top 10 players in the franchise’s history thus far, also including their Long Island days as the New York Nets.

Honorable Mention: Drazen Petrovic, Number 3, guard, 1991-93. What could have been. He might have been the best shooter in the world at the time. Between the Nets and his earlier tenure with the Portland Trial Blazers, he was 4th all-time in NBA 3-point shooting percentage. He had talent. He had desire. He had guts. He had intelligence. He had the temperament to survive sports stardom in the New York Tri-State Area – something Jeremy Lin still has to prove that he has. But Petro was killed in a car crash after the 1993 season. That crash may have altered the history of the franchise. Since he was only a Net for 2 seasons, I can’t include him in the Top 10. But his number has been retired.

Honorable Mention: Rick Barry, Number 24, forward, 1970-72. Also just 2 seasons with the Nets, so he can’t be counted in the Top 10. He came from Roselle Park, and may be the best basketball player the State of New Jersey has ever produced. (Don’t tell me Shaquille O’Neal was born in Newark: He became a basketball player in San Antonio, Texas. As he said of his own father on one of his rap albums, “Biological don’t matter.”) He led the ABA in scoring and free-throw percentage in both of his ABA seasons, and helped the Nets reach the 1972 Finals, before going back to the Golden State Warriors. He’s a member of the Hall of Fame, and was named to the NBA’s 50th Anniversary 50 Greatest Players – but he and the Nets are only small parts of each others’ stories.

Honorable Mention: Kenyon Martin, Number 6, forward, 2000-04. I can’t quite put him in the Top 10 due to his injuries, but when he was healthy, he was a beast. He paired with Jason Kidd to power the Nets into 2 NBA Finals, but injuries and the greed of Bruce Ratner led to his being traded in 2004. He now plays for the Los Angeles Clippers.

10. Brian Taylor, Number 14, guard, 1972-76. A member of a fantastic athletic family (his older brother Bruce played cornerback for 8 years for the San Francisco 49ers), he helped Perth Amboy become to Middlesex County, New Jersey high school ball what UCLA then was to the college ranks and the Boston Celtics were to the NBA. And he wasn’t just a kid whose only ticket to college was sports: He graduated from Princeton University. He wasn’t a Net for long, but he played on both ABA title teams and in 2 ABA All-Star Games. He was ABA Rookie of the Year in 1973, and remained in the NBA until 1982, mostly with the San Diego Clippers. He became a high school teacher and administrator, and now builds charter schools.

9. Mike Gminski, Number 42, center, 1980-88. From Monroe, Fairfield County, Connecticut, so more or less a local guy, he got Duke into the 1978 National Championship Game, and gave the Nets 8 years of gritty inside play. Had a good outside shot, too. The G-Man might have been better served on a better team, but that the Nets weren’t better in the Eighties was hardly his fault.

8. Bill Melchionni, Number 25, guard, 1969-76. He seemed destined for Philadelphia basketball stardom, having been born in the city and playing at Bishop Eustace High School across the river in Pennsauken, New Jersey, and just outside the city at Villanova University, before being a rookie reserve on the 1967 NBA Champion 76ers. The Nets offered him more money, and he was also a member of the Dr. J-led Nets champions of ’74 and ’76. He was 3rd on the ABA’s all-time assists list. His brother Gary and nephew Lee both starred for Duke University. His number has been retired by the Nets.

7. Richard Jefferson, Number 24, forward, 2001-08. A very exciting young player, he was the 3rd member of the Big Three with Kidd and Martin. Like Dr. J and Super John, he had unbelievable moves. And, unlike Kidd, he wanted to stay with the Nets. He was actually looking forward to the move to Brooklyn. Instead, Ratner had him traded to the Milwaukee Bucks for Yi Jianlian and Bobby Simmons – not the worst trade in Net history, but close. He now plays for the San Antonio Spurs.

6. John Williamson, Number 23, guard, 1973-80 (except for 1977-78 with the Indiana Pacers). Here’s a guy who was really hurt by the national media’s ignorance of pro basketball in the Seventies. Had he come along in the ESPN era, “Super John” would have been a sensation. He helped the Nets win the 1974 and 1976 ABA Championships, almost singlehandedly winning the ’76 title by scoring 16 points in the 4th quarter of the clinching Game 6, to overcome a 22-point deficit against the Denver Nuggets. Unfortunately, he developed diabetes, which led to kidney failure and his death in 1996, age 45. His Number has been retired by the Nets.

5. Derrick Coleman, Number 44, forward, 1990-95. He and future Miami Heat star Rony Seikaly got Syracuse to within a basket of the National Championship in 1987, and the sky seemed the limit. He was NBA Rookie of the Year, and up to that 1992-93 season he seemed like he was going to do for the Nets what Jason Kidd later did, and more.

But then that cunt John Starks clotheslined Kenny Anderson (in one of the post-Erving, pre-Kidd Nets’ rare national TV appearances), causing Kenny to crash to the floor and break his wrist. The Nets were never the same: Kenny became a moody journeyman, and Petro was killed; in between, Coleman went from being a marketable star to being a whiny jerk. By January 1995, he was on the cover of Sports Illustrated as the symbol of NBA primadonnaism. After retirement, Coleman became a broadcaster, but has since filed for bankruptcy. As New Jersey’s own Connie Francis would say, “Who’s sorry now?”

4. Vince Carter, Number 15, guard, 2004-09. Before there was Linsanity, there was Vinsanity. Carter remains the greatest player the Toronto Raptors have ever had, but while he reached 3 All-Star Games with the Nets, the Meadowlands club never really got to see his best. He did manage to pick the team up a bit after Kidd moped his way out of Jersey, but ultimately his NBA career has been a disappointment – though he provided enough excitement to not be an out-and-out failure. He’s now reunited with Kidd on the Dallas Mavericks, although he was with the Phoenix Suns last season, so he doesn’t have a ring.

3. Buck Williams, Number 52, forward, 1981-89. He is the Nets’ all-time leader in games played, minutes played, field goals made and attempted, free throws made and attempted, offensive and defensive rebounds, and points. He is 3rd all-time in the NBA in offensive rebounds. But he never won a title, and only reached the NBA Finals after leaving the Nets (in 1990 and ’92 with the Portland Trail Blazers). His Number 52 has been retired by the Nets, but he is not yet in the Hall of Fame. He should be: He was a terrific player and a classact.

2. Jason Kidd, Number 5, guard, 2001-08. Few athletes have ever made as much difference to a team as Kidd did when he arrived in a trade with the Phoenix Suns for clubhouse cancer Stephon Marbury in 2001. Almost instantly, the Nets went from being one of the NBA’s joke franchises to being a genuine title contender. First season: Eastern Conference Champions. Second season: Same, and actually won 2 games in the NBA Finals. Third season: A 3rd straight Atlantic Division Championship. Fourth season…

Well, that’s when Bruce Ratner bought the team, and their fate was sealed. He instantly began the process of moving the Nets to Brooklyn, and the Nets became a lame-duck team, and have spent more seasons as such (7, 2005-12) than did the Montreal Expos (4, 2000-04). Despite another Division title in 2006, it was pretty much all over. Ratner broke up the team, and drove the fans away. The last Nets game I’ve attended had 12,000 people at the Meadowlands Arena – and this was when the San Antonio Spurs were in town, as defending champions, with Eva Longoria still married to the Spurs’ Tony Parker, and Nets part-owner Jay-Z and his wife Beyonce also in the front row. You’d think people would at least want to see them… Pretty soon, Kidd didn’t want to be there, either, and left under a cloud.

1. Julius Erving, Number 32, forward, 1973-76. Only 3 seasons, but 2 of them were ABA Championship seasons. Yes, he was spectacular, but he also brought results. What he did with the Philadelphia 76ers made his legend grow further. But the facts that the Nets had to pay the NBA an entry fee, pay the Knicks a territorial indemnification free, sell Doctor J to pay those, go from being the best team in the ABA to being the worst in the NBA, spend 4 years in the inadequate Rutgers Athletic Center in Piscataway, and then go into a slightly improved exile in the Meadowlands, makes any thoughts of Doc in a Nets uniform bittersweet at best. Still, this member of the 50th Anniversary 50 Greatest Players and the Hall of Fame does have his Number 32 retired by the Nets, as well as his Number 6 retired by the 76ers.

Top 10 Greatest New York Jets

Continuing the series I began, on the top 10 players of each of the Tri-State Area's major league teams. On to the J, E, T, S, Jets, Jets, Jets!

Honorable Mention to members of the Jets’ Ring of Honor at MetLife Stadium who are not otherwise in this Top 10: Winston Hill, Gerry Philbin, Al Toon, and coach Weeb Ewbank. Also to Richard Todd and Ken O’Brien, and to active Jets Mark Sanchez and Darrell Revis. And to coach Bill Parcells: "You are what your record says you are." And to coach Herman Edwards: "You play to win the game!" And to Ed Anzalone, a.k.a. Fireman Ed, and his all-time favorite player, Bruce Harper. But not to coach Rex Ryan -- not unless he finally keeps his promise. (As former Yankee star Jim Bouton would say, "Yeah, surrrre!")

10. John Riggins, Number 44, running back, 1971-75. It’s easy to forget, for all his runs behind those Washington Redskin “Hogs,” but Riggo played 5 years for the Jets, and until Curtis Martin just got in, he was the only member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame who played at least 3 seasons with the Jets with none of those seasons being the 1968-69 Super Bowl season.

9. Vinny Testaverde, Number 16, quarterback, 1998-2003 & 2005. No, he wasn’t Namath’s backup in Super Bowl III – he wasn’t quite that old. (Babe Parilli, an All-American at Kentucky and an AFL start with the then-Boston Patriots, was Joe’s backup then.) But he did come within a half of doing what only Namath has done, quarterbacking the Jets into a Super Bowl. Like Y.A. Tittle with the early-Sixties Giants, he seemed to more after age 34 than before it.

8. Larry Grantham, Number 60, linebacker, 1960-72. Along with Gerry Philbin, he led the Jet defense that should be remembered as the real heroes of Super Bowl III. Remember, the Baltimore Colts went 13-1 in the regular season, and went into Cleveland Municipal Stadium (NFL Championship Game sites were rotated between divisions then, not based on record), against the Browns, the only team that had beaten them, and crushed them, 31-0. And the Jets held that offense to 7 points. Which is good, because, despite all the hype, Namath only led them to 1 touchdown (and 3 field goals). Grantham was there at the beginning, playing as the New York Titans in front of under 5,000 people at the disintegrating old Polo Grounds, and was there at the Orange Bowl when glory was finally achieved.

7. Wesley Walker, Number 85, receiver, 1977-89. How soon we forget: Al Toon, Keyshawn Johnson, Wayne Chrebet, and now Santonio Holmes and Plaxico Burress have gotten bigger headlines, but Walker did more for the Jets than any of them. He hauled in 15 Richard Todd passes in the Jets’ 1982 Playoff wins against the Cincinnati Bengals at Riverfront and the Raiders at the Los Angeles Coliseum. He caught the winning pass from Ken O’Brien in the 51-45 win over the Miami Dolphins at the Meadowlands in 1986. He caught 438 passes for 8,306 yards and 71 touchdowns. He should be in the Hall of Fame.

6. Marty Lyons, Number 93, defensive tackle, 1979-89. An incredibly underrated player, he should be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and isn’t even in the Jets’ Ring of Honor yet. The anchor of the University of Alabama’s National Championship defense in 1978, he became the centerpiece of the New York Sack Exchange. He’s become the Jets’ radio analyst and runs a charitable foundation.

5. Joe Klecko, Number 73, defensive end, 1977-87. With Mark Gastineau, Marty Lyons and Abdul Salaam, he formed the New York Sack Exchange, which got a lot of headlines but did not achieve what the Giant defenses of 1956-63, 1986-90 and 2007-present did.

A knee injury probably kept him out of Canton, but he is the only defensive player to have his number retired by the Jets. Dwight Stephenson, the Hall of Fame center for the Miami Dolphins (whose career was ended by an apparent cheap shot by the man at Number 5 on this list), has called Klecko one of the 2 best interior linemen he ever faced. Anthony Munoz, the Hall of Fame tackle of the Cincinnati Bengals, says he had “perfect technique” puts him in a group with Mean Fred Dean, Lee Roy Selmon and Bruce “Bad Things” Smith as the best defensive ends he played against. Yet another Hall-of-Famer, Buffalo Bills guard Joe DeLamielleure, puts him on equal footing with Merlin Olsen and Mean Joe Greene – truly high praise. Joe is the father of Dan Klecko, a defensive tackle won won 2 Super Bowls with the Patriots and another with the Colts.

4. Freeman McNeil, Number 24, running back, 1981-92. With Johnny Hector, formed “The Two-Headed Monster,” and rushed for over 8,000 yards, making him the Jets’ all-time leader until Number 2 on this list came along.

3. Don Maynard, Number 13, receiver, 1960-72. For those of us who tend to think of Riggins as a Jet, for a long time, Maynard was the only Jet besides You Know Who in the Hall of Fame. Somebody had to catch You Know Who’s passes, to be Raymond Berry to his Johnny Unitas, Lynn Swan to his Terry Bradshaw, Jerry Rice to his Joe Montana.

2. Curtis Martin, Number 28, running back, 1998-2005. Yet another figure in the Jets-Patriots rivalry, Bill Parcells brought him in when he moved from Foxboro to East Rutherford. He is the Jets’ only 10,000-yard rusher, and slightly trails Tiki Barber of the Giants as New York football’s all-time leading rusher (although he’s ahead of Tiki if you count his Patriot years). He was just elected to the Hall of Fame, and deservedly so.

1. Joe Namath, Number 12, quarterback, 1965-76. You were expecting someone else? True, he only reached the Playoffs twice. Statistically speaking, Joe's credentials for the Hall of Fame are actually kind of skimpy.

But, like his contemporaries Muhammad Ali and Walt Frazier, there was a perfect mix of man and moment: The late Sixties, great sports achievement, a change in style, and the growth of mass media and advertising to properly complement them. Just as Johnny U was the perfect quarterback for the preceding era, Broadway Joe was the right man, in the right sport, in the right position, in the right place, in the right time.

Top 10 Greatest New York Football Giants

This is the first of a new series: The top 10 performers for each of the New York Tri-State Area major league teams.

I'll be leaving out the WNBA's New York Liberty and MLS' New York-New Jersey MetroStars/New York Red Bulls. But I will be including the 2 baseball teams that left after the 1957 season.

I'm starting with the newly recrowned Super Bowl Champions, since they're still freshest in our minds.

Top 10 New York Football Giants

Honorable Mention to the Giant players not in this Top 10 who are in the Pro Football Hall of Fame: Ray Flaherty, Benny Friedman, Pete "Fats" Henry, Clarence "Red" Badgro, Ken Strong, Alphonse "Tuffy" Leemans, Andy Robustelli, Harry Carson, Arnie Weinmeister and Y.A. Tittle. And to owners Tim and Wellington Mara, and to player & coach Steve Owen.

And, while they are not yet in the Hall of Fame, Honorable Mention also to coaches Jim Lee Howell, Bill Parcells and Tom Coughlin; to general manager George Young; to owners Jack Mara and Bob Tisch; and to players Al Blozis, Charlie Conerly, Alex Webster, Dick Lynch, Joe Morrison, Pete Gogolak, Brad Van Pelt, Dave Jennings, George Martin, Carl Banks, Mark Bavaro, Jessie Armstead, Amani Toomer, Osi Umenyiora and Justin Tuck. All of these except the active ones, including Coach Coughlin, are in the Giants' Ring of Honor at MetLife Stadium.

10. Roosevelt Brown, Number 79, offensive tackle, 1953-65. Maybe the Giants should look for more players from old college towns in Virginia: Lawrence Taylor was from Williamsburg, and Rosey Brown was from Charlottesville. Unlike L.T., who went to a fully-integrated University of North Carolina, Brown came from a different era, and had to go to a "historically black college," Morgan State University in Baltimore.

But it got him noticed, and he became one of the best tackles in football history, protecting quarterbacks Charlie Conerly and Y.A. Tittle and blocking for runners Frank Gifford and Mel Triplett. In 1999, when The Sporting News listed the 100 Greatest Football Players, Rosey was listed at Number 57 -- albeit 3rd among men named Brown, behind running back Jim at 1 and defensive back Willie at Number 50.

9. Phil Simms, Number 11, quarterback, 1979-93. Considering how many injuries -- and how many boos -- he got at the beginning of his career, it's amazing how loved he now is. Perhaps, like another "blond bomber" 10 years earlier, Terry Bradshaw, he used that as motivation to make himself respected and his team World Champions. He didn't make people say, "Ooh" and, "Aah" like his contemporary Dan Marino. But which one has 2 rings? Or even 1? That Simms is not yet in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, after 13 years of eligibility, is ridiculous.

8. Tiki Barber, Number 21, running back, 1997-2006. True, he hurt his legacy by flapping his gums, and even more by an ill-timed retirement, which saw the Giants win the Super Bowl the very next season, making him football's Elgin Baylor. (This also happened to Stan Musial, but he had helped the St. Louis Cardinals win 3 World Series long before.) But there is only one New York Giant who has rushed for over 10,000 yards, and that's Tiki. And he did help the Giants get into a Super Bowl -- albeit the only NFL championship game the franchise has lost since the aftermath of the JFK assassination.

7. Michael Strahan, Number 29, defensive end, 1993-2007. Sure, he can be a comical figure, with his appearances on Fox NFL Sunday, and that infamous gap in his front teeth. But the man wouldn't be on that show if he didn't know his football. Smirk all you want at his single-season record of 22 1/2 sacks in 2001, but his 141 1/2 sacks are a New York football record. And he did go out in style, leading the Giant defense in Super Bowl XLII, showing the world how to beat Tom Brady: Get in his face, again and again, and knock him on his ass, again and again.

6. Eli Manning, Number 10, quarterback, 2004–present. Simms led the Giants to 2 Super Bowl seasons and was Super Bowl MVP in 1 of them. Eli has now been named MVP of 2 Super Bowls, and both were better games than the ones Simms and Namath played in. And let's not forget: Much like the Jets were in Super Bowl III, the Giants were underdogs in both of their Supes with the Patriots.

No more underdog status for Eli. At the beginning of this season, he was asked if he was "an elite quarterback." He said he was. He has now proven his ability, his determination, and his courage. From now on, doubt him at your own peril.

5. Mel Hein, Number 7, center-linebacker, 1931-45. Until Mike Webster came along, Hein was generally regarded as the greatest center in NFL history. He helped the Giants into 7 NFL Championship Game, winning in 1934 and 1938. In the latter year, the NFL Most Valuable Player award was given out for the firs time, and Hein won it. He remains the only offensive lineman ever to win it. He was named to the charter class of the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1963, the center on the NFL's 50th Anniversary Team in 1969 and also to its 75th Anniversary Team in 1994. When TSN named its 100 Greatest Players in 1999, Hein came in at Number 74. That same year, TSN also listed him as one of 3 centers on their College Football Team of the Century. He was an All-American at both football and basketball at Washington State University.

4. Emlen Tunnell, Number 45, safety, 1948-58. He died in 1975, while a Giant assistant coach, and as a result never got to be interviewed for any of the great NFL Films pieces on the Giants of his era. As a result, he may be the most forgotten great player ever.

He intercepted 79 passes, an all-time record that has only once been surpassed (and then just barely, by Paul Krause's 81). Records that have not been surpassed are his 1,282 yards on interception returns, and 2,217 yards on punt returns. He helped the Giants win the 1956 NFL Championship, and won another title with the Green Bay Packers in 1961 -- with head coach Vince Lombardi having been the Giants' offensive coordinator until 1958. He was named the NFL's all-time greatest safety on its 50th Anniversary Team in 1969, 2 years after becoming the first black player elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. On TSN's 100 Greatest Football Players, Tunnell came in at Number 70 -- clearly, their experts remembered him. We should, too.

3. Sam Huff, Number 70, linebacker, 1956-63. This guy was L.T. before L.T. was even born: The defining player at the position of linebacker. He didn't use drugs like L.T., either. As Charlie Sheen would say, he was on a drug called Sam Huff.

To put it another way: In 1960, CBS Reports (the successor series to Edward R. Murrow's See It Now) did a piece called "The Violent World of Sam Huff." After this program, hosted by Walter Cronkite, aired and practically invented what NFL Films would soon start doing, with Huff miked up, showing what a football game really sounded like for the first time, a CBS executive put an envelope in a mailbox, marked only "Number 70." No name. No address. No return address. In 2 days, that envelope arrived at Huff's locker at the old Yankee Stadium. The post office knew "Number 70" could only mean Huff.

After 1963, he went to the Washington Redskins, extended his career, and is now remembered there as a broadcaster, much as the man at Number 2 is remembered now. On TSN's 100 Greatest Football Players, Huff came in at Number 76.

2. Frank Gifford, Number 16, running back-receiver, 1952-64. We've known him as a broadcaster (or at least as the husband of Kathie Lee Gifford) for so long, it's easy to forget what a sensational player he was. Before Mike Garrett, O.J. Simpson, Anthony Davis, Charles White, Marcus Allen and Reggie Bush, he was the man who started the USC running back tradition. At the start of his career, when NFL players were still expected to play on offense and defense, all 60 minutes, he was also a good defensive back. He was a glamour boy, so a lot of people who didn't like the Giants didn't like him. But he was sensational.

After getting clobbered by Chuck Bednarik in 1960 (EDIT: Had to fix that), he did not return, and retired rather than play in 1961. But he got the bug back, and returned for 3 more seasons, becoming the league's best receiver, before age caught up with him and a few others in 1964. He became the only player in any of the 4 major league sports to be elected to its Hall of Fame as both a player and a broadcaster.

1. Lawrence Taylor, Number 56, linebacker, 1981-93. For all the controversies, during and since his pro career, Taylor has been considered one of the best players ever. On TSN's 100 Greatest Football Players, L.T. came in at Number 4, the highest-ranking defensive player.

All of the above are in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, except Simms and Barber, both now eligible, and Strahan, who becomes eligible next year.