Allan Houston

At 53 years old, Allan Houston has this physical status:

High school and college career

Houston was born in Louisville, Kentucky, and graduated from Ballard High School in Louisville, Kentucky, where they captured the 1988 Kentucky state championship. He went on to play at the University of Tennessee (where he served under his mentor and father Wade) and graduated in 1993 as the school's all-time leading scorer, and second to Chris Lofton at Tennessee for three-point field goals made. Houston is a member of Kappa Alpha Psi. During halftime ceremonies at a Tennessee-Kentucky match on March 6, 2011, the University of Tennessee retired Houston's number (201).

Professional career

Houston was selected by the Detroit Pistons in the 1993 NBA draft in the first round (eleventh overall) and averaged 8.5 points per game in his rookie year. In the upcoming two years, his average has risen to 14.5 and 19.7 points per game.

Houston signed as a free agent with the New York Knicks in 1996, after his rookie deal came to an end. Houston took the place of John Starks in the starting lineup for the first year as a Knick, with Starks as a mentor for him. Houston held his scoring average at 17 points per game and led the team to the 1999 NBA Finals. In the first round of the 1999 Eastern Conference quarterfinals against the Miami Heat, his most memorable game came in Game 5 of the first round. Houston won the game and the series for the Knicks in the fourth quarter with the ball trailing by a single point. To advance to the NBA Finals, the Knicks will then face the Atlanta Hawks and Indiana Pacers. In his first Finals appearance of his career, Houston averaged 21.6 points per game, with a memorable 34 point win over San Antonio in a game 3 victory. Patrick Ewing and Larry Johnson's injuries to Patrick Ewing and Larry Johnson, the Knicks, will miss the series 4-1.

In April 2001, Houston and teammate Charlie Ward were quoted in a New York Times Magazine article making statements that were deemed anti-semitic by the Anti-Defamation League and the Knicks. Houston quoted a biblical verse in support of Ward's remarks after Ward had called Jews stubborn and persecutors of Christians.

Houston was known for his three-point shooting prowess during his career. Both Houston and Atlanta have been voted to the All-Star team twice. Despite the on-court accolades, Houston's lasting legacy may have been something that happened off the track: In 2001, the Knicks' six-year, $100.4 million contract extension. Houston's annual salary of over $20 million made him practically untradeable, and the Knicks' injuries could place him in a difficult situation. Despite rumors that he would be able to play the next season (he even refused to have knee surgery) in 2003-04, Houston missed 32 games this season because his injury hadn't fully recovered. Houston would eventually have to declare his resignation on October 17, 2005, due to knee injuries. Houston tried to return to the NBA in 2007, but he decided against it on October 20, 2007 due to bad timing in selecting the squad so late in the season. Houston was signed by the Knicks to play in 2008, but before that season, the Knicks were cut before even appearing in a game.

The NBA struck an understanding with the player's union in 2005 that had reached a new collective bargaining agreement. The deal also contained an amnesty provision that permitted teams to release one player without obtaining their salary against the NBA's luxury tax threshold. The agreement did not prohibit a player's contract, a squad's promise to compensate a player, or a player's effect on the salary cap; it simply made it possible to exclude a released player's salary from luxury tax calculations on a one-time basis. The provision was favorable to teams that were in danger of facing the luxury tax, because it was a fine levied by teams with payrolls over a certain threshold. The amnesty clause was referred to by the Knicks as a result of his expensive contract and injury woes (as of the 2005 offseason, two years and $40 million were still on his contract). The Houston Knicks did not want to release Jerome Williams after Houston told his team that if his knee injuries recurred in preparation camp this fall, he would retire, but instead, they released forward Jerome Williams.

In a 98 loss to the Toronto Raptors, Houston's last NBA game was played on January 19, 2005, where he had 3 points, 4 assists, 1 rebound, and 1 steal while playing 28 minutes off the bench.

National team career

Houston was a member of the USA men's national basketball team that won the gold medal at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia.

Executive career

The New York Knicks recruited Houston as an assistant to the president for basketball operations in 2008. Houston was promoted to the role of assistant general manager in December 2010. Houston is the organization's special assistant to the general manager of the Knicks as of July 2019, and he was also general manager of the Westchester Knicks, the organization's G League affiliate.

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