The 13-year NBA veteran played for New York from 1991 to 1996, then for the Charlotte Hornets until 2000 The New York Knicks said on Saturday that Anthony Mason, a rugged power forward who was a defensive force for several NBA teams in the 1990s, has died. He was 48.Knicks spokesman Jonathan Supranowitz confirmed Mason’s death, which was first reported by the New York Daily News.