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<\/a><\/p>\nNEW YORK, NY – FEBRUARY 15: The New York Knicks retired number banners hang above the court during the 64th NBA All-Star Game presented by Kia as part of the 2015 NBA All-Star Weekend on February 15, 2015 at Madison Square Garden in New York, New York. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and\/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2015 NBAE (Photo by Noah Graham\/NBAE via Getty Images) NBAE via Getty Images<\/p>\n
Only seven numbers are out of circulation for the Knicks, with nine total players\/coaches honored in the rafters.<\/p>\n
Of those nine, only two are ringless. Dick McGuire played in the 1950s, where he made seven all-star teams and appeared in three NBA Finals, but even his number retirement is shared with Earl the Pearl. The only other player in the long history of the Knicks to retire ringless and get his name in the rafters is Patrick Ewing, the franchise\u2019s all-time leading scorer.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s an existing debate to put Carmelo Anthony\u2019s No. 7 in the rafters after he existed as the team\u2019s only mainstream star between the Ewing and Brunson eras, but it feels like it would\u2019ve happened by now. Melo\u2019s number still hasn\u2019t been worn since he left in 2017. No other number lower than 27 has been out of circulation longer.<\/p>\n
Even if the Knicks never won a championship, you could probably add at least one name to the rafters when their careers are over. But now that they\u2019ve joined the elite club of champions, suddenly half the roster is in contention to get their numbers retired.<\/p>\n
Remember, those 1970 and 1973 teams got six players in the rafters. The entire starting lineups of both championship teams are up there. Only Earl Monroe wasn\u2019t on both teams. That distinction probably means we aren\u2019t putting six in the rafters this time, but there will be retirement ceremonies in the future.<\/p>\n
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JUNE 18: Karl-Anthony Towns #32 and Jalen Brunson #11 look on during the New York Knicks Championship ticker tape parade and victory rally celebrating winning the 2026 NBA Finals on June 18, 2026 in New York City. The New York Knicks defeated the San Antonio Spurs in five games to win their first NBA Championship in 53 years. (Photo by Angelina Katsanis\/Getty Images) Getty Images<\/p>\n The only person who might\u2019ve objected to this was Becky Hammon, but she seems to have finally admitted she was wrong about the Knicks\u2019 captain.<\/p>\n There are few things to say about Jalen Brunson that haven\u2019t been said on this site, on every other site, and what will be said about him when the NBA Champions series we\u2019re doing gets to him. He is, quite simply, the best thing to ever happen to this franchise.<\/p>\n Whether he\u2019s the greatest Knick of all time is open to interpretation, but the circumstances that led to his arrival and superstardom surpass anything in history. The way he revived one of the NBA\u2019s most iconic organizations from the doldrums will go down forever. Even if he never won a championship here, he would deserve this honor.<\/p>\n If the team wanted to retire his number on Opening Night while presenting him with his ring, that would be a perfectly acceptable reaction.<\/p>\n This was honestly the biggest debate before the chip was closed out. Could Towns do enough, without a championship, to ensure 32 is never worn again?<\/p>\n The legacy of Renaldo Balkman, Jimmer Fredette, and Noah Vonleh is a tough one to overshadow…<\/p>\n In all seriousness, it was probably 50\/50 whether a half-decade of all-star play and perennial contention could get Towns in the rafters, but now there\u2019s no question.<\/p>\n An All-NBA-caliber running mate for Brunson that ended a 53-year drought. A Piscataway native who grew up a Knicks fan. As New York as any player not named Jose Alvarado. What he did against Victor Wembanyama in the first two games will be replayed forever.<\/p>\n There\u2019s a good chance that 32 is never worn again in Minnesota, either, which could make Towns part of an elite fraternity of players to have their numbers retired by multiple teams<\/a>. Regardless of how the remainder of his Knicks career goes, or how long it is, he\u2019s a legend who helped end a 53-year drought as the second option. It\u2019s a slam dunk.<\/p>\n NEW YORK, NY – MAY 21: OG Anunoby #8 and Josh Hart #3 of the New York Knicks look on during the game against the Indiana Pacers during Game 1 of the 2025 Eastern Conference Finals on May 21, 2025 at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2025 NBAE (Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant\/NBAE via Getty Images) NBAE via Getty Images<\/p>\n This is something I don\u2019t think anyone could\u2019ve predicted when Anunoby became a Knick on December 30, 2023. A guy who may never make an all-star team, who probably won\u2019t win a Defensive Player of the Year award, or ever be a top option might have his number retired by an iconic franchise.<\/p>\n Anunoby\u2019s 2026 playoff run was one for the ages. Aside from missing two games due to a hamstring injury and a slow start to the Cavs series as a result, he was arguably the team\u2019s most consistent player and overall MVP due to his incredible defense. His sequence in the final 20 seconds of Game 4 of the NBA Finals might be the most impactful sequence in team history.<\/p>\n The difficult thing to do is compare him to someone on the 1970\/73 teams. If the all-stars-to-roster-spots ratio was the way it was back then, Anunoby would be an all-star, so comparing legacies in that fashion would be improper. It\u2019s objectively a lot harder to get to that point today.<\/p>\n If I had to guess, OG will be here for long enough that he will be remembered in such a fond way that he gets his number retired. If not, nobody will wear 8 for a while as an informal retirement, similar to Melo.<\/p>\n It\u2019s pretty bold to put a player like Hart up here with Anunoby, whose case to be enshrined among the greats is in him effectively swinging the entire NBA Finals by himself at the end of Game 4, but there\u2019s a case to be made that Hart could get to this point, while also adding an asterisk to make it more likely.<\/p>\n Hart will forever go down as the heart of this championship team. It\u2019s been spoken about ad nauseum, but the 6\u20194\u201d wing is possibly the best hustle player of this generation, a connector, a positive presence in the locker room, and a flat-out winning player. His impact matters every postseason, regardless of how fans can turn on him due to clunky regular season performances or lineups.<\/p>\n Will that be enough to get him in the rafters with another few years on the team? I\u2019m leaning no, but I offer a addendum.<\/p>\n What if we take a page out of Dick McGuire and Earl Monroe\u2019s book and double-retire No. 3? Not many fans would object to honoring John Starks\u2019 contributions to the franchise, even if he alone didn\u2019t merit a number retirement. If only Game 7 went differently…<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n