From Texas to New York: Frazier’s Draft and Rise

Walter Frazier was born in 1945 in Atlanta, Georgia, and grew up in Cumberland, Maryland. As a teen he was no prodigy—he truly broke out in college.

He played at Southern Illinois, led the Salukis to the NCAA Final Four, and caught the NBA's eye with rugged defense and a mature game. In the 1967 draft the Knicks took him 5th overall—New York already had Reed and needed a two-way, steady point guard. Frazier fit perfectly.

He entered the rotation as a rookie and made the All-Star team by year three. From unknown to New York cornerstone took just three years. He proved: a guard's value lies not only in talent, but in brain and hands.

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• 1970 Finals Game 7: 36 Points, 19 Assists, Frazier’s Coronation
• College Years: Southern Illinois’ Run to the Final Four
• Frazier and Reed: The Knicks’ Inside-Outside Core