NBA Athlete Number 19 - Willis Reed

Willis Reed, considered widely as one of the 50 best NBA athletes of all-time, is the best to wear number 19. He wore it for the New York Knicks, spending his entire NBA career with them.

Reed was drafted by the Knickerbockers in 1964 and would see significant court time with them immediately.  He played in 80 games in his first season in Madison Square Garden.  In that rookie season of 1964-65, Reed   shot .432 with 1,560 points and 1,175 rebounds.  That was more than good enough to earn Mr. Reed the NBA Rookie of the Year Award for the 1964-65 season.

Reed, who was a seven time All-Star in his relatively brief ten year career, would win NBA championships with the Knicks in 1970 and 1973.  For the 1970 campaign, Reed was both the NBA regular season MVP and the NBA Finals MVP.

• 1982 Basketball Hall of Fame Inductee
• 12,183 points 
• 8,414 rebounds
• 12.9 rebounds per game (12th all-time)
• 1,358 playoff points
• 17.4 points per playoff game

Did you know.............that the Knicks have retired jersey number 19 in Reed's honor?