NEW YORK - Allan Houston is rejoining the New York Knicks, two years after knee pain forced him to walk away. The Knicks re-signed their former star guard Wednesday and expect him to begin his attempt to make the team at practice Friday.
Once one of the NBA's best outside shooters, Houston retired two years ago this month after chronic knee pain limited him to 70 games over the previous two seasons. Now at age 36, he's trying to make it back with the team he led to an improbable berth in the 1999 NBA finals.
"After much thought and prayer, I have decided to return to the NBA as a member of the New York Knicks," Houston said in a statement. "I have worked extremely hard in the last year and a half to accomplish my dream of playing in the NBA again."
"After my wife and I were blessed with the birth of our fourth child last week, I realized that New York is where I am supposed to be, and the Knick uniform is the one I want to wear. I have seen the Garden in some of its best moments, and I truly believe that this team is on the verge of experiencing that again. This team is hungry and energetic. I hope to contribute in the weeks and months ahead."
Houston had also considered making his comeback with the New Jersey Nets, but has remained close to the Knicks organization. He was captain of the team for six seasons.
Houston is not expected to be in uniform Thursday when the Knicks host Maccabi Tel Aviv in their preseason home opener.
With the maximum 15 players already under contract, the Knicks don't necessarily have room for Houston. But if he can still play — and guard Jamal Crawford said during workouts Houston proved he could — coach Isiah Thomas would find a way to keep him.
"If he's that good, I mean if he's the Allan Houston that we know and we haven't seen him in a while but if he's that good a player, we want good players," Thomas said after practice. "If we're in a position where a player can help us, we definitely will look at him and make room for him."
After spending his first three seasons in Detroit, Houston signed with the Knicks and became one of the top players in franchise history. His 11,165 points in the regular season rank fourth behind only Patrick Ewing, Walt Frazier and Willis Reed on the team's career list.
His most memorable moment came in the 1999 playoffs, when his running jumper in the closing seconds of the deciding Game 5 gave New York an upset victory over top-seeded Miami in the first round. The Knicks went on to reach the finals, where they lost to San Antonio.
He signed a much-criticized $100 million, six-year contract extension in 2001 and averaged a career-best 22.5 points in 2002-03. But the knee problems severely limited him after that, and he scored only 11.9 points per game his lowest total since he was a rookie in 20 games his final season,
Houston has no guarantees of a spot, and will have to show his legs are healthy enough to earn one. But the outside shot that helped him average 17.3 points in 12 NBA seasons was still there in recent workouts.
"Didn't miss a shot really," Crawford said. "I think he shot 100 shots and made 96 of them just to get loose. So he still can shoot."
