WALT “CLYDE” FRAZIER
With a nickname taken by a Knicks trainer from the folk-hero robber Clyde Barrow, whose life was chronicled in the film Bonnie and Clyde, Frazier presided over the Knicks for 10 years from 1967 to 1977. He left holding team records for points scored, games played and assists.
A certified hero in New York, Frazier became as well known for his stylish attire and after-hours partying as for his ballhandling and peerless defense. This led to many magazine articles, photoshoots as well as commercial advertising opportunities. He parlayed his cool persona into becoming one of the first athletes to be paid to wear a basketball sneaker — a suede version made by Puma.
As a Knicks player, Frazier scored 19.3 points per game, played in seven NBA All-Star Games, and was named to four All-NBA First Teams and seven NBA All-Defensive First Teams. He is especially remembered for his inspirational performance in the seventh and deciding game of a thrilling 1970 NBA Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers.
Frazier developed his playing philosophy very early on, according to his high school coach, and carried it with him to the pros: aggressive defense takes priority and hitting an open man is more productive than taking a wild shot.
Early in the 1971-72 season the Knicks acquired guard Earl Monroe, an archnemesis of Frazier’s, from Baltimore. Skeptics said the longtime rivals were a disastrous match, but instead the storied “Rolls-Royce backcourt” gave the Knicks an even more formidable defense. “He’s fire and I’m ice,” Frazier said of Monroe in Newsday. In 1972-73, the pair’s first full season together, New York defeated the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals and then regained the championship by downing the Lakers in five games.
His second championship ring marked the peak of Frazier’s career. The Knicks began a steady decline that saw them fall out of championship form and then out of the playoffs entirely by 1976. Frazier, meanwhile, turned in three more All-Star seasons and even captured the All-Star Game MVP Award after a 30-point performance in 1975. In 1976-77, his scoring average dipped to 17.4 points per game, and the Knicks missed the playoffs for the second straight year.
On the eve of the 1977-78 season New York sent Frazier to the Cleveland Cavaliers as compensation for the free-agent signing of Jim Cleamons. With that move one of the most glorious careers in Knicks history came to an end. At the time, Frazier ranked as the Knicks’ all-time leader in scoring (14,617 points), assists (4,791), games played (759) and minutes (28,995). Patrick Ewing would eventually surpass him in all those categories except assists.
SUMMARY
| G | FG% | FT% | Rebs | RPG | Asts | APG | Stls | Blks | Pts | PPG |
| 825 | .490 | .786 | 4,830 | 5.9 | 5,040 | 6.1 | 681 | 59 | 15,581 | 18.9 |
Full Name: Walter Frazier Jr.
Born: 3/29/45 in Atlanta, GA
College: Southern Illinois
Drafted: New York Knicks, 1967 (5th overall)
Transactions: Acquired by Cleveland Cavaliers as compensation for Knicks signing Jim Cleamons, 10/7/77
Nickname: Clyde
Height: 6-4; Weight: 200 lbs.
High School: David Howard (Atlanta)
Honors: Elected to Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame (1987); NBA champion (1970, ‘73); All-NBA First Team (1970, ‘72, ‘74, ‘75); All-NBA Second Team (1971, ‘73); All-Defensive First Team (1969-75); Seven-time NBA All-Star; All-Star MVP (1975); One of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History (1996).