Harthorne Wingo, fan favorite and member of the 1972-73 championship Knicks team, passed away at 73-years-old.
He played limited minutes for the ’72-73 team, but was beloved by his teammates and the MSG faithful as “Wingo” chants often filled The Garden when he took the floor.
Knicks Super Fan Jeff Greenberg shared his favorite memory of Wingo:
“It was 1973. Driving with Wingo around LA. I skipped school and flew out for the championship. I showed him Farmers Market on Fairfax. We drove through Hollywood and just acted like tourists. He attended my 18th birthday party. He was a gregarious, fun loving guy. No airs. They revered him up at Rucker and on West 4th. He was just a pleasure and I wish I could’ve stayed in touch. People always forget these bench guys weren’t millionaires and had a short shelf life. Godspeed and RIP. I can still hear the Wingo chants during home games.“
Wingo played four seasons for the Knicks and all 82 games of the 1974-75 season with a career scoring average of 4.8 ppg. Wingo said it was his dream playing alongside his heroes on that legendary 1973 Knicks team that won a ring because he followed them during the 1970 championship run as a fan.
“It was like a dream come true because everyday, I was looking at my heroes,” Wingo said in 2019. “They won the first championship in ’69-70, and I was a fan of the Knicks.”
“Every day, I couldn’t believe it. There’s Willis Reed, Jerry Lucas, Walt Frazier, Earl Monroe. Thank you, God. That’s the way I felt,” Wingo said.
Rucker Park Legend
Though Wingo had a successful NBA career, he first made his mark in New York City at a young age playing professional ball in Rucker Park. He played alongside some of the NBA’s best players at Rucker and eventually cemented himself as one of the 50 greatest players to play in the Rucker Pro League.
In 1970, the Knicks got word that the Harlem Wizards were interested in signing Wingo and urged him to instead sign with the minor league Allentown Jets. He ended up signing with Allentown and led them to the league title as the league’s MVP during the 1971-72 season. Soon after, on Feb. 1, 1973, Wingo got called up by the Knicks and signed his first NBA contract.
Wingo’s awkward release made him an instant favorite to Knicks fans who loved watching his shots fall. So much so that the Beastie Boys referenced him in their song “Lay It On Me” with the line, “My favorite New York Knick was Harthorne Wingo.”
Career Overseas
Wingo played four seasons with the Knicks in the 1970’s before finishing his career overseas. He played professionally in Italy, Switzerland and South America before retiring.
“Italy was good,” he said in a 2017 interview. “We traveled all throughout Europe. Spain, France, Italy, Bucharest in Romania. Had a great time. To win the Euro was good. We were the first Italian team to go back-to-back. That’s the second-best team in Europe.”
Wingo cemented his basketball legacy in NYC and across the globe. His stats may not jump off the stat-sheet, but his impact was iconic to a Knicks team that would eventually win an NBA championship.
“Harthorne Wingo was a beautiful person,” Wingo’s former teammate, Bill Bradley, told The New York Post. “The fans loved him and so did his teammates. He was a positive part of the team dynamic and shared rightfully in the glow of the 1973 championship.”
RIP