The Two Stooges

I have lots and lots of beef today and it's with who else? The New York Knickerbockers?

Really Knicks? Really James Dolan? Really?!?! Why in God's name would you ever let Isiah Thomas work in any capacity with the Knicks? Don't you remember that he is responsible for the tragic mess that was the Knicks for most of the decade? Remember those deals for Stephon Marbury, Eddy Curry and Steve Francis, and all of the great draft picks that were lost in the process? Remember when he spent $30 million each on Jared Jeffries and Jerome James? How about when Thomas and Madison Square Garden were sued by Anucha Brown Sanders for sexual harassment in October 2006, and had to pay Sanders $11.6 million, money which could have been used to sign another mediocre basketball player. Not ringing a bell, huh? He is the main, if not the sole reason for the Knicks' woes, barring James Dolan's idiocy.

So why ever bring a guy like that back to your organization? It's like if this country had brought back George W. Bush for a second term (oh wait that really happened ... did I say that out loud?). It's like if Benedict Arnold coming back to fight for the United States. It's like if the Apostles accepted Judas back into their group. Thomas may have not been a traitor like the least two (or three depending on your political views) but the way he managed the team certainly made it seem as if he had a vendetta against the Knicks. I mean, this is Isiah Thomas we're talking about, Knicks Enemy #1.

I'm convinced that this is the work of the Devil, who also goes by the name of James Dolan. Dolan has tormented Knicks fans since he was given an increased role in running the team in 1999. Guess when the last time the Knicks had a winning season or won a playoff game? The 2000-01 season. Not much of a coincidence, considering that according to numerous polls, Dolan has been voted the worst owner in the NBA. Two years before Isiah came, Dolan signed 30 year old Knick legend Allan Houston to a max contract which paid Houston $20 million a year over six years. Although Houston deserved a contract, no other team would have even thought of paying him three-quarters of that. The aging Knicks star broke down over the next few years, missing 32 games during the 2003-04 season, 62 games during the 2004-05 season, and then retiring on October 17, 2005 - all due to a knee injury - with $40 million left on his deal.

Then there was the hiring of Isiah Thomas in 2003, followed by the signing of Larry Brown as head coach after the 2004-05 season to a 5 year, $50 million deal. Brown was fired after one year, the rest of his contract being bought out for $18.5 million, on top of the $10 million he made the first year. $28.5 million for one season in which your team finished 23-59 record, not too shabby.

But let's get back to Thomas' blunders which are a bit more interesting. His executive career started in 1994 with the Toronto Raptors as part owner and Executive Vice President. Thomas was relatively successful there, proving his sharp eye for talent by drafting players like Marcus Camby and Tracy McGrady. In 1998, Thomas left for a short stint as a broadcaster on NBC. Then the fun sets in. That same year, Thomas bought the 54 year old Continental Basketball Association for $10 million. It only took him two years to send the league into bankruptcy, forcing the league to fold and declare bankruptcy in February 2001. The collapse was accelerated by the creation of the NBA Development League in 2000, and the use of that league as the official developmental league for the NBA as opposed to the previously used CBA. Still, many owners blame the league's folding on Thomas.

Following his stint with the CBA, Thomas found a job coaching the Pacers, but was unsuccessful in bringing up the young talent that the team had, as the Pacers were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs all of the three years that Thomas was coach. Thomas was fired following the 2002-03 campaign. And then begins the saga with the Knicks.

I'm not saying that Thomas doesn't have an eye for talent. He's drafted guys like David Lee and Nate Robertson while with the Knicks, both of whom played integral parts on the team and Tracy McGrady and Marcus Camby with the Raptors, both of whom developed into phenomenal players. He's also drafted Trevor Ariza, Channing Frye and Wilson Chandler all of whom have developed into solid players in the league. But, he was one of the main components in the downfall of the Knicks. I don't blame him for accepting the job as much as I blame Dolan for offering it to him. Dolan has time and time again proven his incompetence and here he's doing it again.

The NBA has the opportunity to stop the deal from occurring however, as since Isiah Thomas is a college basketball coach (at Florida International University), many of the teams in the NBA view it as an unfair advantage for the Knicks in the recruitment of young players. As a college coach, Thomas would be talking to both high school and college players, possibly persuading players to be less than enthusiastic about playing for anyone other than the Knicks. And we all know how persuasive Thomas can be, he got James Dolan to keep him around for five years, and now he's getting Dolan to once again make him a part of the Knicks organization.