WASHINGTON, D.C. – Patrick Ewing used his introductory press conference Wednesday at Georgetown to address the most important issue he thinks is keeping the Hoyas from returning to past glory.
“These guys have been fighting hard in the past, but there are just too many bare knees,” the new coach said. “How can someone play basketball with their knees just exposed out to the world like that?”
The former New York Knicks star said he is leaning on the school’s board of directors for a massive increase in its knee pad budget to keep up with the “big boys.”
“When I got to campus here and the players told me they have never even worn knee pads, it explained everything,” Ewing said. “I probably fell on my knees like three, maybe even four times in my 30 years of playing ball. Without those pads, I may have bruised them, or even worse, skinned them and drew some blood.”
The former NBA assistant said that even though he has not watched a college basketball game in 15 years, the “knee pad gap” must be keeping the Hoyas down.
“If you walk into a place like Kentucky, I mean those guys probably have it all,” Ewing said. “Weight rooms, training tables, and all the knee pads the players could ever need. Mizuno, Burton, the unbranded off-white ones I wore a few years … no way coaches like John Calamari or Mike Kroosockie are sending guys out there with anything but the best in knee pad technology.”
In addition to reaching out to assistant coaching candidates, Ewing also said he’s looking for a new team barber to get his players matching flat tops.
“I have not yet begun that process but I will soon,” Ewing said to reporters. “If anyone has a phone number for DJ Jazzy Jeff, please let me know. Or maybe Kid or Play or whichever one had that nice look … you know what I’m talking about.”
