Knicks Legend Walt Frazier Details Special Relationship

The friendship between Walt "Clyde" Frazier and Earl "The Pearl" Monroe changed the course of New York Knicks history.

May 8, 2024; New York, New York, USA; Former NBA player and basketball hall of fame member Walt Frazier during game two of the second round for the 2024 NBA playoffs at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images / Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images

THE BRONX-Upon their respective NBA entries, New York Knicks legend Walt "Clyde" Frazier was awaiting and hating his matchup with Earl "The Pearl" Monroe.

"Earl and I were drafted the same year," Frazier said, recalling the 1967 NBA Draft. "(He) was drafted second pick by the (Baltimore) Bullets. I was picked by the Knicks. I hated him."

Frazier and Monroe have obviously doused any hard feelings: the two share an unbreakable bond as Knicks champions and the former was on hand in The Bronx for the groundbreaking ceremony of The Earl Monroe New Renaissance Basketball School on Wednesday. The establishment is set to open in January 2026 and was made possible through the philanthropy of several notable names such as current Knicks All-Star Julius Randle, who contributed $1.3 million through his "30 for 3" program.

Frazier offered moments of trademark levity through his speech on Wednesday, detailed his relationship with Monroe, who was on the Knicks when Fraizer took home the latter two titles. "Clyde" documented the early battles with Monroe's Bullets before speaking volumes of their metropolitan heyday.

"Oscar Robertson was 6-5, so he was going to back you in and pound and pound. (Jerry) West was going to stop and pop. Earl didn't know what he was going to do," Frazier said, drawing hearty laughs from fellow speaker and often eternally stoic Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau. "How did I know what he was (going to do?) I used to tell my friends, man, he's the only man I ever dreamt about."

March 21, 1973; New York, NY, USA; FILE PHOTO; Atlanta Hawks guard Pete Maravich (44) defends New York Knicks guard Earl Monroe (15) at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Manny Rubio-Imagn Images / Manny Rubio-Imagn Images

"Earl was a globetrotter. He brought the playground game into the NBA, and if Oscar and West scored on me, I didn't mind, but Earl, he always had to add a little pizzaz, whatever he did, styling to the crowd."

Frazier contained Monroe well enough to win an NBA title in 1970, which included a seven-game series victory over the Bullets in the postseason's opening round. The latter was eventually traded to the Knicks in the early stages of the 1971-72 season to form the "Rolls-Royce Backcourt" with Frazier.

Despite early tensions ... Frazier recalled mock outrage upon learning of the Monroe trade in the newspaper with management's consultation ... the duo became one of the most beloved in NBA history and a lasting friendship and working cohesion was formed. Frazier said that he would not have made the Hall of Fame without Monroe's assistance.

"I've got to try to elevate my game, to compete with Earl. So there was always that challenge," Frazier said. "I used to say, like I was like his reflection. Wherever he went, I was there. He saw me, back and forth we went, and so we had that mutual respect."

Sometimes I say 'Earl, great shot,' and sometimes he said, 'Clyde, good defense.' That was the only conversation we'd ever had with the pushing and shoving," he continued. "When he came to the team, I remember something like, you can't judge a book by its cover."

Despite outside apprehension, with Frazier recalling that the media claimed the duo would need "two basketballs" for the collaboration to produce anything of value, the pair played six seasons together, taking down the Los Angeles Lakers in the aforementioned 1973 Finals. Both men have since earned entry into both Springfield and the Madison Square Garden rafters, where their numbers have been retired by the franchise.

Frazier went on to call Wednesday's event a culmination of the "antithesis" of Monroe's off-court persona, one where he claimed that "The Pearl" would lend out his famed Rolls-Royce to others (something Frazier cheekily noted he would never do). While he always debated whether to "hug or mug" Monroe when he saw him, Frazier had nothing but love for his former teammate and hoped that the modern Knicks would emulated the example established and followed.

"Earl's impact off the court is about giving back," Frazier said. "You look at (John) Starks having his own foundation, Allan Houston does, so do I. Many of the guys are very cognizant of giving back. We're parents. We're concerned about drug abuse, child abuse, teenage pregnancies, the dropout rate. We're always willing to give back and help the youth."

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