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 Earl
Vernon Monroe could orchestrate a
dazzling show on the basketball
court. You'll find few basketball
fans anywhere who don't fondly
recall Monroe's twisting, spinning,
faking, double-pumping,
spin-dribbling moves as a member of
the Baltimore Bullets and New York
Knicks. Known for his flamboyant
style, Earl "The Pearl" Monroe
ignited both his teammates and fans
wherever he played and whenever he
stepped onto the court. His high
school teammates at John Bartram
High School called him "Thomas
Edison" because of the many moves he
invented while playing hour upon
hour on the rough-and-tumble
Philadelphia playgrounds...Book
Earl Monroe for Your Event
Under the tutelage of Hall of Fame
coach Clarence "Big House" Gaines at
Winston Salem College, Monroe's
collegiate career was a case study
in improvement. He averaged 7.1
points his freshman year, 23.2
points as a sophomore, 29.8 points
as a junior and 41.5 points his
senior year. During his spectacular
1967 senior season, Monroe set the
small college record for total
points in one year (1,329), earned
NCAA College Division Player of the
Year honors and led the Rams to the
NCAA College Division Championship.
In
1967, the two-time All-America was
drafted by the Baltimore Bullets in
the first round of the NBA draft and
made an immediate impact earning NBA
Rookie of the Year honors. In
Baltimore, Monroe teamed with Hall
of Famer Wes Unseld, and led a
Baltimore offense that featured one
of the most spectacular fast breaks
in the NBA. It was during "The
Pearl's" Baltimore years that he
became a cult hero. In 1971, Monroe
was traded to the talent-laden
Knicks. He and Hall of Famer Walt
Frazier were a celebrity backcourt
and the duo gradually meshed
together to form a formidable tandem
full of razzle dazzle and
spectacular basketball. With Monroe,
the Knicks won the 1973 NBA
championship. A four-time NBA
All-Star, Monroe retired after the
1980 season due to serious knee
injuries. He had played 926 career
games, scored 17,454 total points
(18.8 ppg) and dished out 3,594
assists. Monroe, who transformed the
game into an exhilarating art form,
had his number 15 jersey retired by
the Knicks on March 1, 1986.
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Book Earl Monroe for Your Event
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