"Hey, don't worry Steph, it's not like it's my money"Human history is pockmarked by catastrophically bad managerial decisions.
Napoleon's decision to invade Russia. Hitler's decision to invade the Soviet Union. The Big Three's decision to not compete with Japanese automakers on fuel economy. That guy's decision to drink from the wrong cup at the end of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. Brian Cashman's decision to give Carl Pavano a 4-year, $40 million deal. Scott Layden's decision to give Allan Houston a max contract. Jim Dolan's decision to hire Isiah Thomas as president and GM of the Knicks. Isiah's decision to trade for Stephon Marbury. Isiah's decision to trade non-lottery protected picks to the Bulls for Eddie Curry. Jim Dolan's decision to give Larry Brown a 5-year, $50 million deal. Isiah and Larry's decision to trade for Steve Francis. Isiah and Jim's decision to fire Larry Brown after one season. Jim's decision to give Isiah a contract extension following a 33 win season.
Whoops. Sort of got side tracked there.
Surely, one day there will be a three-day symposium at the Harvard School of Business dedicated solely to the ignominious collapse of the once-proud New York Knickerbockers franchise. Along with the Lakers, Celtics, and Bulls, the Knicks are one of the crown jewels of the NBA - one of the teams that generate enough general interest in the league to keep the other 26 teams afloat. However, since notching a 14th consecutive playoff appearance following the 2000-2001 season, the Knicks have gone into free fall, putting up a collective 195-297 record (a putrid .396 winning percentage). Contending in an enfeebled Eastern Conference, the team has only managed to reach the playoffs once in that span, getting swept in the first round by the Nets in 2004.
Certainly, this decline did not begin under Isiah Thomas; in fact, he was brought on board in December of '03 to replace Scott Layden (who bid against himself to sign Allan Houston's bad knees to a 6-year, $100 M deal) as President and General Manager following 30 and 37 win seasons. The cupboard was bare, and Isiah promptly proceeded to fill it with bad contracts. His first major move was to acquire Coney Island native Stephon Marbury from the Phoenix Suns. "Starbury", as he liked to refer to himself, was and is a shoot-first point guard constitutionally incapable of making his teammates better, a la Jason Kidd or Steve Nash, and his me-first attitude quickly came to characterize the dysfunctional squad. Isiah then proceeded to build an Island of Misfit Toys, acquiring more point guards than he could possibly use (Jamal Crawford, Steve Francis), a soft center who can score and basically do little else (Eddie Curry - out-rebounded 20 to 3 by Dwight Howard last week), and a bunch of other teams' head cases, cast offs, and shiftless layabouts (Penny Hardaway, Malik Rose, Jerome James, Quentin Richardson, possibly Zach Randolph). The low point came after the 2005-06 season, when high priced coach Larry Brown (probably brought on at owner Jim Dolan's insistence) was fired following a 23-59 record, worst mark in franchise history. Larry walked away with a total of $28 million of Cablevision's money after coaching just one year in his so-called "dream job"; Isiah, who probably always wanted to coach the Knicks himself, got his wish, and was promptly awarded a contract extension during the following season - a season he completed with a 33-49 mark as the team dropped 15-of-19 down the stretch.
Unfortunately, this offseason, the disaster did not merely play out one the basketball court, but in New York State Supreme Court as well. Anucha Browne Sanders, senior VP for marketing with the Knicks, sued the team and Isiah Thomas for sexual harassment and discrimination, claiming that she was propositioned by Thomas and then fired for complaining about it. James Dolan refused to the settle the case out of court (Browne Sanders apparently asked for $6 million), instead alleging that she was fired for performance related reasons; this, of course, after awarding her a $76,000 bonus the year before. (Which, given the way the Knicks pay their players, might not be so unbelievable after all.) The trial was a major embarrassment for the Knicks: Isiah was portrayed as a sexist lout who frequently berated subordinates and casually tossed the word "bitch" around the office (he also allegedly declined Browne Sanders' request to personally sign season ticket renewal request letters by saying "Bitch, I don't give a fuck about those white people"); James Dolan came off as a dingbat fiddling while Rome burned; and it led to the greatest correction in the vaunted history of the New York Times:
How long can this possibly continue? How long can NBA Commissioner (and closet Knicks fan) David Stern continue to watch one of the league's marquee franchises pull face plant after face plant? The Knicks, picked by many to make the playoffs this season (not exactly a bold statement, considering that 16 out of 30 teams secure a berth, a few with sub-.500 records), have started off 2-4, showing occasional flashes of...goodness, but look mostly lost and lackadaisical under Isiah's tutelage. Following an evidently contentious flight for a west coast road trip, wherein Isiah told Stephon "What's that about a fence? Oh, defense, right right" Marbury that his playing time was going to be reduced, the petulant star reportedly responded by saying "Isiah has to start me. I've got so much [stuff] on Isiah and he knows it. He thinks he can [get] me. But I'll [get] him first. You have no idea what I know." (For those keeping score at home, I think that's "shit","fuck","fuck" in the brackets there.) Starbury then went AWOL, grabbing a flight back to New York, claiming in a bizarre text message to the media that Isiah had given him permission (read: "You don't like it you can get the fuck out of here!") to leave the team; the Knicks are now reportedly looking to buy Marbury out of the two-years , $42 million left on his deal.
Calling the Knicks' present situation an embarrassment is akin to calling Pearl Harbor a surprise; perhaps the Dolans would be better off from a PR standpoint just shoveling their money directly into a furnace. New York is a basketball town, rich with avid, knowledgeable fans, and Madison Square Garden is a Mecca: last year when Kobe Bryant was suspended for the Lakers' only MSG appearance of the season, he was palpably disappointed in a way that he probably wouldn't have been if the game was at, say the Izod Center. Waking up to this team each morning is probably driving these people to drink, or worse. So why won't Jim Dolan fire Isiah? Or put the team in a blind trust? God only knows, but following last year's unbelievable contract extension - for turning in the same record the team had two years ago when they brought in Larry Brown to turn things around - I can only speculate that Isiah Thomas has some sort of Rasputin-like hold on the Dolan family. Either that, or Jim Dolan subscribes to the same managerial philosophy as Rudy Giuliani and President Bush.
Napoleon's decision to invade Russia. Hitler's decision to invade the Soviet Union. The Big Three's decision to not compete with Japanese automakers on fuel economy. That guy's decision to drink from the wrong cup at the end of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. Brian Cashman's decision to give Carl Pavano a 4-year, $40 million deal. Scott Layden's decision to give Allan Houston a max contract. Jim Dolan's decision to hire Isiah Thomas as president and GM of the Knicks. Isiah's decision to trade for Stephon Marbury. Isiah's decision to trade non-lottery protected picks to the Bulls for Eddie Curry. Jim Dolan's decision to give Larry Brown a 5-year, $50 million deal. Isiah and Larry's decision to trade for Steve Francis. Isiah and Jim's decision to fire Larry Brown after one season. Jim's decision to give Isiah a contract extension following a 33 win season.
Whoops. Sort of got side tracked there.
Surely, one day there will be a three-day symposium at the Harvard School of Business dedicated solely to the ignominious collapse of the once-proud New York Knickerbockers franchise. Along with the Lakers, Celtics, and Bulls, the Knicks are one of the crown jewels of the NBA - one of the teams that generate enough general interest in the league to keep the other 26 teams afloat. However, since notching a 14th consecutive playoff appearance following the 2000-2001 season, the Knicks have gone into free fall, putting up a collective 195-297 record (a putrid .396 winning percentage). Contending in an enfeebled Eastern Conference, the team has only managed to reach the playoffs once in that span, getting swept in the first round by the Nets in 2004.
Certainly, this decline did not begin under Isiah Thomas; in fact, he was brought on board in December of '03 to replace Scott Layden (who bid against himself to sign Allan Houston's bad knees to a 6-year, $100 M deal) as President and General Manager following 30 and 37 win seasons. The cupboard was bare, and Isiah promptly proceeded to fill it with bad contracts. His first major move was to acquire Coney Island native Stephon Marbury from the Phoenix Suns. "Starbury", as he liked to refer to himself, was and is a shoot-first point guard constitutionally incapable of making his teammates better, a la Jason Kidd or Steve Nash, and his me-first attitude quickly came to characterize the dysfunctional squad. Isiah then proceeded to build an Island of Misfit Toys, acquiring more point guards than he could possibly use (Jamal Crawford, Steve Francis), a soft center who can score and basically do little else (Eddie Curry - out-rebounded 20 to 3 by Dwight Howard last week), and a bunch of other teams' head cases, cast offs, and shiftless layabouts (Penny Hardaway, Malik Rose, Jerome James, Quentin Richardson, possibly Zach Randolph). The low point came after the 2005-06 season, when high priced coach Larry Brown (probably brought on at owner Jim Dolan's insistence) was fired following a 23-59 record, worst mark in franchise history. Larry walked away with a total of $28 million of Cablevision's money after coaching just one year in his so-called "dream job"; Isiah, who probably always wanted to coach the Knicks himself, got his wish, and was promptly awarded a contract extension during the following season - a season he completed with a 33-49 mark as the team dropped 15-of-19 down the stretch.
Unfortunately, this offseason, the disaster did not merely play out one the basketball court, but in New York State Supreme Court as well. Anucha Browne Sanders, senior VP for marketing with the Knicks, sued the team and Isiah Thomas for sexual harassment and discrimination, claiming that she was propositioned by Thomas and then fired for complaining about it. James Dolan refused to the settle the case out of court (Browne Sanders apparently asked for $6 million), instead alleging that she was fired for performance related reasons; this, of course, after awarding her a $76,000 bonus the year before. (Which, given the way the Knicks pay their players, might not be so unbelievable after all.) The trial was a major embarrassment for the Knicks: Isiah was portrayed as a sexist lout who frequently berated subordinates and casually tossed the word "bitch" around the office (he also allegedly declined Browne Sanders' request to personally sign season ticket renewal request letters by saying "Bitch, I don't give a fuck about those white people"); James Dolan came off as a dingbat fiddling while Rome burned; and it led to the greatest correction in the vaunted history of the New York Times:
An earlier version of this article misstated the location of a 2005 sexual encounter between Stephon Marbury of the Knicks and a team intern. Mr. Marbury testified that it took place in his truck, not in the trunk of his car.In the end, Browne Sanders' won the case and an $11 million verdict again Madison Square Garden; appeals are pending.
How long can this possibly continue? How long can NBA Commissioner (and closet Knicks fan) David Stern continue to watch one of the league's marquee franchises pull face plant after face plant? The Knicks, picked by many to make the playoffs this season (not exactly a bold statement, considering that 16 out of 30 teams secure a berth, a few with sub-.500 records), have started off 2-4, showing occasional flashes of...goodness, but look mostly lost and lackadaisical under Isiah's tutelage. Following an evidently contentious flight for a west coast road trip, wherein Isiah told Stephon "What's that about a fence? Oh, defense, right right" Marbury that his playing time was going to be reduced, the petulant star reportedly responded by saying "Isiah has to start me. I've got so much [stuff] on Isiah and he knows it. He thinks he can [get] me. But I'll [get] him first. You have no idea what I know." (For those keeping score at home, I think that's "shit","fuck","fuck" in the brackets there.) Starbury then went AWOL, grabbing a flight back to New York, claiming in a bizarre text message to the media that Isiah had given him permission (read: "You don't like it you can get the fuck out of here!") to leave the team; the Knicks are now reportedly looking to buy Marbury out of the two-years , $42 million left on his deal.
Calling the Knicks' present situation an embarrassment is akin to calling Pearl Harbor a surprise; perhaps the Dolans would be better off from a PR standpoint just shoveling their money directly into a furnace. New York is a basketball town, rich with avid, knowledgeable fans, and Madison Square Garden is a Mecca: last year when Kobe Bryant was suspended for the Lakers' only MSG appearance of the season, he was palpably disappointed in a way that he probably wouldn't have been if the game was at, say the Izod Center. Waking up to this team each morning is probably driving these people to drink, or worse. So why won't Jim Dolan fire Isiah? Or put the team in a blind trust? God only knows, but following last year's unbelievable contract extension - for turning in the same record the team had two years ago when they brought in Larry Brown to turn things around - I can only speculate that Isiah Thomas has some sort of Rasputin-like hold on the Dolan family. Either that, or Jim Dolan subscribes to the same managerial philosophy as Rudy Giuliani and President Bush.
