Blood in the Garden: The Flagrant History of the 1990s New York Knicks

by Chris Herring

With five seconds left, and Indiana ahead 97–95, Harper whipped an inbound pass to Ewing at the arc, where he was instantly blanketed by a double team. The big man hesitated, looking for an open teammate, before turning his back to the basket. He then pivoted to his right and pounded a dribble into the hardwood, gaining enough steam not only to get into the lane, but also to split Indiana’s defenders, who’d thought that Ewing would pull up for a jumper. “It was like the seas opened up,” Harper says. Ewing created a clean look at the basket. The only problem was he’d left his feet maybe one dribble too early, leaving him too far away to dunk the ball, but too close to float it in. So with an abundance of momentum, Ewing tried to finger-roll it in. But the attempt was long, and it bounced off the back iron.