The term "warrior" has been overused in sports, but it is used correctly when applied to Patrick Ewing.

Patrick had an admirable career, one worthy of ranking him among the top 10 centers of all time. He compiled excellent numbers as a consistent shooter from the field and the foul line and as a shot blocker and rebounder. He also kept the Knicks in the hunt for the NBA title nearly every year, getting to the Finals once.

	Patrick Ewing was a force on both ends of the floor.

But along with his consistency, what stuck out the most about Patrick was his intensity. He always played to win. When the game began, everyone knew he would put forth his best effort -- and it was evident in the strong numbers he posted every night.

One knock on Patrick is that he never won an NBA championship, but neither did Elgin Baylor or Karl Malone or John Stockton or Charles Barkley. While Baylor is already in the Hall of Fame, the other three will be there as well someday without a title. And so will Patrick.

Coaching against Patrick was always a defensive challenge. He worked hard to get good position and would always get the shot he wanted to take.

Patrick liked the left box; it was his favorite spot. And he liked to take the ball to the middle. We would try to beat him to the spot he wanted so that he would be at least a step away. Then we would try to take away the middle and force him to take a turnaround jumper turning toward the baseline. He could still make the shot, but it was a better option and we had a better chance of containing him than if he got to the middle.

Defensively, we tried to take the ball at him to make him commit and then find open players. Or if we could get him away from the basket and drive on him, we had a chance to get him in foul trouble. But Patrick was tough. Every time we played him, we had to deal with him in a positive way if we had any hope of beating the Knicks.

I can remember one game when I saw Patrick block a shot on the defensive end, run the floor and score on a layup at the other end. That summed up how he played and what he did on a consistent basis. He could beat you guarding his man on defense or serving as a great help defender, or he could beat you on the offensive end.

His production and effectiveness waned over the last four years, but Patrick played as long as he could and as well as he could. Eventually, time catches up to everybody. It caught up to Patrick, and I'm glad to see him retire with so many great memories of a fine Hall of Fame career.

Dr. Jack Ramsay, a Hall of Fame coach who won an NBA title with Portland in 1977, is an NBA analyst for ESPN.