Knicks legends and NBA commissioner gather for Earl Monroe school groundbreaking
Legends and luminaries from the basketball world recently united in the south Bronx for a groundbreaking ceremony of the Earl Monroe New Renaissance Basketball Charter School at 647 Elton Avenue (just north of 149th Street and Third Avenue).
Speakers included NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, New York Knicks Head Coach Tom Thibodeau, three-time NBA All-Star power forward Julius Randle, NBA Hall of Famer and Knicks icon Walt Clyde Frazier, and the man after whom the school is named: NBA Hall of Famer and Knicks great Earl Monroe.
“It is such a great moment for us here—first of all, to see you guys out there to welcome this new school,” Monroe said to the audience, which included students from the class of 2025, who will be the school’s first graduating class. “It’s been a long time in planning and it’s something that we are all very, very proud of.”
Speaking about the significance of the occasion, Silver said: “What this building and what this school represents are all incredible opportunities that stem from the game of basketball. We all know about the great players who played in the NBA and who are now playing in the WNBA, and many of those great players are here with me today. And of course, we wouldn’t have the game without them, but what gets lost sometimes are all the careers that stem from this game of basketball. For every single player in the NBA or WNBA, it creates hundreds of jobs in this basketball ecosystem.”
A student from the graduating class thanked Randle for helping to raise $1.3 million for the school. The gymnasium will be called “the Julius Randle All-Star Court.”
Randle thanked the Knicks organization and his “big brothers” in the organization for being there, notably John Starks, Allan Houston, Tim Thomas, Frazier, and Monroe.
Randle also addressed the students. “None of this works without you guys putting in the work,” he said. “You guys have to show up to class. You guys have to absorb the knowledge. You have to listen.
”It doesn’t matter about the opportunity. The opportunities come and go, but you guys have taken advantage of that and put the work in every day, so I want to say ‘thank you, guys.’ I’m extremely proud of you guys and I’m just excited to see where this continues to go.”
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