4 Former New York Knicks That Would Thrive In Today’s NBA

New York Knicks Player #1: Bob McAdoo

I figured I would talk about Bob McAdoo first since he is the biggest name on the list in terms of his peak.

Yes, Bob McAdoo is a Hall of Famer. Shout out to fellow contributor Avishai Sol for the recommendation of using McAdoo in this article. We both agree that McAdoo is one of the most underrated and overlooked legendary big-men in NBA history.

And that is exactly why he fits this list. While his resume is fantastic, it was cut short due to a brutal string of injuries. His short-lived prime, combined with playing in an era that is widely ignored, has allowed McAdoo’s greatness to be unknown to many.

Speaking of short-lived, McAdoo only played with the New York Knicks from 1977-79. His dominance was still present though, even as he feuded with fellow star Spencer Haywood.

As the saying goes, “Once A Knick, Always A Knick.”

So what was special about McAdoo that would help his game translate to the modern NBA? McAdoo was a player ahead of his time:

"By the middle of the 1975-76 season, Sports Illustrated was calling McAdoo “the quickest tall man, finest shooter and most astounding outside scoring machine ever to play basketball.” According to the same publication, when told that his coach, Jack Ramsay, had said McAdoo could become the greatest big man to play the game, McAdoo (never noted for his modesty) retorted, “I think I’m the greatest already.” Indeed, McAdoo won a third straight scoring title that season, averaging 31.1 points. The performance prompted Bill Russell, then coach of the Seattle SuperSonics, to tell a Buffalo publication: “He’s the greatest shooter of all time, period. Forget that bit about the ‘greatest shooting big man.’” McAdoo made his most lasting contribution to the game’s strategic development as the first big man to shoot regularly from the outside. In his first four seasons, nearly half of the shots he took came from outside the lane, a dazzling new strategy for a center. And in half of his 14 NBA seasons, he shot .500 or better from the floor."

Just look at these highlights. McAdoo routinely and fearlessly fired away jumpers from all over the floor. He took very few threes following the league’s adoption of the 3-point line in the 1979-80 season. He made just three in his career.

He was such a skilled shooter, both off the dribble and spotting up, that had he put the work in he could have been a more than viable stretch big.

Even if he never took his jumper to the next level in the modern NBA, McAdoo would still have been a dominant inside and outside scoring threat. He would have dribbled circles around many of today’s centers, too.