JOHN STARKS | Position: Guard Born: 8/10/65, Tulsa, Oklahoma College: Oklahoma State Height: 6' 5" Weight: 185 lbs. Stats |
Background: A fiery competitor and streaky shooter, John Starks has emerged from obscurity to become an All-Star guard for the New York Knicks. Along the way he has earned a reputation as a top backcourt defender and clutch three-point shooter, although his hot streaks have been matched by some equally notable cold spells. In 1994-95 the 6-foot-5 Oklahoma native set an NBA record for three-pointers in a season with 217.
Starks did not follow the usual path to the NBA. He played for four colleges in four years, ending with a season at Oklahoma State, where he averaged 15.4 points. He was not selected in the 1988 NBA Draft but managed to earn a spot on the Golden State Warriors' roster. He made 36 appearances for the Warriors in 1988-89 and averaged 4.1 points.
The Warriors renounced their rights to Starks during the offseason, and he ended up with the Cedar Rapids Silver Bullets of the Continental Basketball Association. He was a CBA All-Star in 1989-90, averaging 21.7 points. He went on to play for the Memphis Rockers of the World Basketball League before signing with the New York Knicks in October 1990.
Starks spent the first month of the 1990-91 season on the injured list with a sprained right knee. He returned to claim a regular spot in the Knicks' rotation, appearing in 61 games as a backup to Gerald Wilkins and averaging 7.6 points and 3.3 assists. In 1991-92 he came off the bench for the Knicks in all 82 games and finished second on the club in scoring at 13.9 points per contest. He set a club record by sinking 8 three-pointers in a game on March 31.
Prior to the 1992-93 season, New York renounced its rights to Wilkins and handed Starks the starting off guard position. Starks got off to a relatively slow start and was averaging 12.5 points through his first 28 appearances. Everything fell into place after that, however, and in his final 52 games Starks poured in 20.1 points per game to raise his season average to 17.5. A key member of Pat Riley's stifling defensive scheme, he also earned a spot on the NBA All-Defensive Second Team.
Starks was even better in 1993-94 before a knee injury sidelined him for the final six weeks of the regular season. An All-Star for the first time in his career, he was averaging 19.0 points per game when he sustained damage to the cartilage in his left knee in a game in early March. He returned for the postseason and played a key role in the club's march to the NBA Finals despite ending the year in disappointing fashion with a 2-for-18 shooting performance from the field (including 0-for-11 from three-point range) in Game 7.
In 1994-95 Starks rewrote the NBA record books with new highs for three-pointers attempted and made, and he finished second on the Knicks in scoring for the fourth year in a row.
Transactions: Never drafted by an NBA franchise. Signed as a free agent by the Golden State Warriors on 9/29/88. Rights renounced by the Warriors on 6/16/89. Played in the Continental Basketball Association with the Cedar Rapids Silver Bullets in 1989-90. Signed as an unrestricted free agent by the New York Knicks on 10/1/90.
1994-95: Starks continued to bomb away from three-point range, and when the dust settled, he had become the first player in NBA history to attempt more than 600 three pointers and sink more than 200 in a season. His total of 217 three-pointers was 25 more than Dan Majerle's previous mark set in 1993-94, and Starks easily eclipsed the New York Knicks' old single-season record of 118 set in 1988-89 by Trent Tucker. Starks also became the franchise's career leader in three-pointers made, a feat he accomplished in only five seasons.
As always, Starks was incredibly streaky. In one 11-game drought spanning late November and the first half of December he shot only .302 from the field. He endured a five-game span in February in which he posted a field-goal percentage of only .277, but he also put together hot strings that included three consecutive games in mid-January in which he averaged 25.0 points as he drained three-pointers at a .654 rate. During a six-game outburst in mid-March he averaged 17.8 points and shot .513 from three-point range. For the season, he averaged 15.3 points and shot .395 from the field and .355 from beyond the arc. He also chipped in with 5.1 assists and 1.15 steals per game.
The Knicks finished the regular season in second place in the Atlantic Division after posting a 55-27 record. They got by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round of the playoffs in four games. Starks averaged 13.0 points against the Cavs, then had a better series against the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. In Game 1 he logged team highs with 21 points and 7 assists. Game 3 saw him strike for 6 of 7 three-pointers in the first half on the way to a 23-point performance. He finished the series with averages of 17.1 points and 5.4 assists per game, and he stroked in three-pointers at a .413 clip. The Knicks fell in seven games.
1993-94: Despite an injury-shortened regular season, Starks made his NBA All-Star Game debut in 1994, joining teammates Patrick Ewing and Charles Oakley on the Eastern Conference squad. Before a knee injury sidelined him in March, Starks appeared in 59 regular-season games (starting 54) and averaged 19.0 points and 5.9 assists. He led the team in assists and ranked second in scoring to Patrick Ewing.
In a game against the Hawks at Atlanta on March 9, Starks tore cartilage in his left knee. He underwent surgery less than a week later and missed the remainder of the regular season. Before the injury Starks racked up 113 three-point field goals, only 5 short of Trent Tucker's club record for a season.
Although a step slower, Starks returned to health for the playoffs and led the Knicks all the way to the NBA Finals. He was the team's second-leading scorer in the postseason, averaging 14.6 points, but despite his excellent all-around campaign he may best be remembered for a woeful shooting performance in Game 7 of the Finals against the Houston Rockets. Starks, who had scored 27 points in Game 6, hit on only 2 of his 18 attempts from the field, missing all 11 of his three-point attempts as the Rockets took the game and the championship.
1992-93: The Knicks let Gerald Wilkins go to free agency but traded for veteran Rolando Blackman and drafted Hubert Davis. Starks split time with Blackman and Davis at the off guard position but still finished as New York's second-leading scorer with 17.5 points per game. A vital cog on the league's best defensive team, he was named to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team at season's end.
Starks finished fourth in the voting for the NBA Most Improved Player Award after increasing his output in nearly every category. He canned 108 three-pointers for the season, which ranked as the second-highest total in Knicks history behind Trent Tucker's 118 in 1988-89.
Starks started 51 times in his 80 appearances, and as a starter he averaged 18.5 points and 5.7 assists. He rained in a career-high 39 points and added 13 assists against the Charlotte Hornets on February 17, then had a career-high 14 assists on March 26 against the Los Angeles Lakers.
The Knicks finished with the best record in the Eastern Conference and set their sights on the franchise's first NBA title since 1973. For the fourth straight season, however, the Knicks fell to the Chicago Bulls in the NBA Playoffs, this time in a six-game Eastern Conference Finals. Starks started all 15 postseason games and averaged 16.5 points and 6.4 assists.
1991-92: Starks began to blossom under first-year coach Pat Riley and emerged as one of the NBA's outstanding sixth men. He came off the bench in all 82 contests and scored 13.9 points per game, second best on the Knicks behind Patrick Ewing (24.0 ppg).
The fiery third-year guard staked his claim as one of the league's most dangerous three-point shooters, hitting 94 of 270 attempts for a .348 percentage. At the time, his 94 treys marked the fourth-highest single-season total in Knicks history. During one sizzling performance, Starks hit a club-record 8 three-pointers in a game against the Chicago Bulls on March 31.
Starks began to develop a cult following as the author of spectacular plays, resulting in an invitation to compete in the Slam-Dunk Championship at the NBA All-Star Weekend in Orlando. He finished fourth in the competition, trailing winner Cedric Ceballos as well as Larry Johnson and Nick Anderson.
The Knicks advanced to the Eastern Conference Semifinals in 1992 and nearly dethroned the Chicago Bulls. Starks averaged 12.1 points in 12 postseason games.
1990-91: The New York Knicks noticed Starks's exploits in the Continental Basketball Association and signed him as a free agent prior to training camp. Not only did he make the Knicks' roster, but he became a valuable contributor as a backup to Gerald Wilkins at off guard.
Starks began the season on the injured list with a sprained right knee but returned to make 61 appearances, averaging 7.6 points in 19.2 minutes per game. He scored in double figures 19 times and had three games of 20 or more points, including a season-high 25 at the New Jersey Nets on March 30.
Starks played sparingly in the postseason, scoring 6 points in 28 total minutes as the Knicks were swept by the Chicago Bulls in a first-round playoff series.
1989-90: The Golden State Warriors released a future All-Star when they waived Starks following the 1988-89 season. He didn't receive any offers from other NBA clubs, so Starks turned to the Continental Basketball Association. He would become one of the great CBA-to-NBA success stories.
He signed on with the Cedar Rapids Silver Bullets and became a CBA All-Star. In 46 games with Cedar Rapids, Starks averaged 21.7 points, 5.5 assists, and 5.3 rebounds. It was his first and last CBA season.
1988-89: John Starks never did things the easy way. He played only one year of high school basketball, then went to four colleges in four years, finally finishing at Oklahoma State in 1988. He averaged 15.4 points as a senior, shooting .497 from the field and .380 (40-of-108) from three-point range, but he was passed over in the 1988 NBA Draft.
The Golden State Warriors signed Starks as a free agent in September and kept him on their roster for the entire 1988-89 season. Starks was little more than a bit player, however, appearing in only 36 games and averaging 4.1 points in 8.8 minutes per game. The Warriors advanced to the postseason but left Starks off their playoff roster.
| Sea. | Team | G | Min. | FG | 3Pt. | FT | Reb. | Ast. | Stl. | Blk. | Tot. | PG |
| 88-89 | Golden State | 36 | 316 | .408 | .385 | .654 | 41 | 27 | 23 | 3 | 146 | 4.1 |
| 90-91 | New York | 61 | 1173 | .439 | .290 | .752 | 131 | 204 | 59 | 17 | 466 | 7.6 |
| 91-92 | New York | 82 | 2118 | .449 | .348 | .778 | 191 | 276 | 103 | 18 | 1139 | 13.9 |
| 92-93 | New York | 80 | 2477 | .428 | .321 | .795 | 204 | 404 | 91 | 12 | 1397 | 17.5 |
| 93-94 | New York | 59 | 2057 | .420 | .335 | .754 | 185 | 348 | 95 | 6 | 1120 | 19.0 |
| 94-95 | New York | 80 | 2725 | .395 | .355 | .737 | 219 | 411 | 92 | 4 | 1223 | 15.3 |
| 95-96 | New York | 81 | 2491 | .443 | .361 | .753 | 237 | 315 | 103 | 11 | 1024 | 12.6 |
| Career Totals: | 479 | 13357 | .426 | .344 | .762 | 1208 | 1985 | 566 | 71 | 6515 | 13.6 | |
| 1996 Playoffs: | 8 | 314 | .448 | .467 | .744 | 29 | 33 | 13 | 1 | 128 | 16.0 | |
| Playoff Totals: | 74 | 2432 | .412 | .369 | .745 | 197 | 344 | 93 | 7 | 1062 | 14.4 | |
| All-Star Totals: | 1 | 20 | .444 | .333 | --- | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 9.0 | |