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Why Did Phoenix Suns Legend Amar’e Stoudemire Retire as a New York Knick?
- Updated: July 27, 2016
Most of what you’ll read today will be about how Amar’e Stoudemire revitalized New York Knicks basketball. This narrative might have been at the forefront of his basketball obituary anyway, but Stoudemire’s curious decision to retire as a member of the Knicks, despite having played nearly twice as many years for the Phoenix Suns, makes his time in New York a larger part of the story.
The Suns drafted Stoudemire out of high school in 2002. He grew up as a professional in Phoenix, played eight seasons there and had his best years for that organization. Five of Stoudemire’s six All-Star nods came while he was with the Suns. He made just one All-Star team in his four-and-a-half seasons with the Knicks.
When most basketball fans think about Stoudemire, they’ll visualize him donning a purple Suns jersey and soaring through the air. When basketball historians consider his Hall of Fame case, exhibit A will be his 2007-08 season, when he averaged a beastly 25.2 points per game on ridiculously efficient 59 percent shooting.
Yet Tuesday, Stoudemire’s retirement statement came from the Knicks, after he signed a one-day contract: “I came to New York in 2010 to help revitalize this franchise, and we did just that. Carmelo [Anthony], Phil [Jackson] and Steve [Mills] have continued this quest, and with this year’s acquisitions, the team looks playoff-bound once again. Although my career has taken me to other places around the country, my heart had always remained in the Big Apple. Once a Knick, Always a Knick.”
There’s no arguing the impact Stoudemire had in New York. Crazy as it sounds—especially when considering the Knicks’ lone roster-building strategy for the past 20 years has been chasing elusive white whales—Stoudemire is perhaps the splashiest free-agent signing in franchise history. Think about it—who else is even on that list? Allan Houston? Bernard King? (Remember, Anthony was a trade acquisition).
Stoudemire’s arrival signaled the Knicks had finally moved past the tempestuous Isiah Thomas era. So what if no other team was willing to insure his crumbling knees? So what if the five-year contract …
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