Brooklyn Nets: Mikhail Prokhorov Putting His Money Where His Mouth Is

From the desk of:   THE HOOPS OF FLATBUSH

August 2012

BROOKLYN NETS: Nets Owner Aims Shot Across MSG Bow.



Hey Little Man..., Don't worry.  It's all relative.


Back during the 2010 Draft Lottery show, when he officially first burst on the scene, and once the lottery picks were set, Mr. Prokhorov hinted to the lovely reporter interviewing him, that if the new Nets owner was made to reveal his five year plan for winning a championship on TV, he would have to kill her.  Of course that was said tongue in cheek, as Prokhorov was obviously playing off the initial, mysterious, international, business tycoon/secret agent persona, he arrived in town with.


In effect, that was his way of saying hello to the NBA, America, and most importantly, Brooklyn and to his new direct competitor.  What he gave fans that night, was, for all intent and purpose, the first impression of Mikhail Prokhorov.  The first message he conveyed to the team's fans was one  predicated on winning.  Mind you, the Nets roster was far less skilled then, unlike the one Billy King just recently assembled.  So on both points; death and winning; those were bold words back then.


But that wasn't when he offered his formal hello to the Knicks.  Mr. Prokhorov took care of his initial introduction to the Manhattan team a few months earlier with a hallmark card in the form of giant mural painted high above 8th Ave, a mere two blocks from MSG.  That bold maneuver precipitated the Billboard Wars.  Jim Dolan rolled out two very brief campaigns, and nothing more for over a year and a half since.  Meanwhile, Brooklyn's billboard campaign continued in earnest, till this very day.  So if there were any fights to be picked, Prokhorov kicked sand at Dolan first.


Then Mikhail left the country, off to Russia.  And you can just ask Pussy Riot; the all-girl punk-rock band arrested and jailed as dissenters in Moscow; how lucky Prokhorov really is to be safely back in the States.  The Nets owner decided to take on Vladimir Putin, and run for President of Russia.  Joking aside, there was a real possibility his ownership of the Nets would be placed in a Trust, if in fact he become the elected leader of modern day Russia.


To the relief of Nets fans, Prokhorov lost the elections, and is finally back in town to antagonize the Knicks, which is right where he should be.  For due to his political aspirations, and playboy/tycoon's need to tempt fate, the result was spending too much time away from the team.  And I in fact, felt his absence was even hurting the Nets.  Back in March of this year, I wrote a post imploring the Nets owner to get back to work running the club.  His latest "Little Man" arrow aimed directly at Jim Dolan is the exact reason; the epitome even; why.  I argued then, as the Nets roster was still in flux without Deron Williams back in the fold yet, among other issues facing the team, but especially with the Knicks tripping over themselves at the same time, I thought it was incumbent upon Mikhail Prokhorov to maintain a presence in town, and at least manipulate the media.  I reasoned, being as Mikhail Prokhorov was such a charismatic guy, he himself was a team asset being underutilized.  And taking a jab at Jim Dolan is a perfect example, in a time when you're still trying to make an impression on your new fan base, of using the media to stir things up, and perhaps win some sentiment, and sway more fans the team's way.


At the time, the next we really heard from the Nets owner was during the Courting of Carmelo Anthony.  That got things even more heated between owners of the Knicks and Nets.  There were no personal attacks this time per se.  But when Mikhail Prokhorov finally did intercede, he did so to inform every one the Nets were out of the running for Melo's services.  Jim Dolan wound up getting his man, but at a steep price.  The Nets then proceeded to smuggle Deron Williams into New Jersey under the cover of night, and trump the Knickerbocker's trade to acquire Carmelo Anthony.


Another sentiment Mikhail Prokhorov verbalized on several occasions over the pass two years, has been his intention to turn Knicks fans into Nets fans.  In my daily experiences throughout the Borough, Mikhail Prokhorov, if not the Nets themselves, indeed have the attention of Brooklynites.


For me personally, I felt the buzz around town was a little tardy on arrival.  I'm sure the Lock-Out had much to do with the lull.  But I say, so did Mikhail Prokhorov's prolonged leave from the team.  Since the unveiling of the team logo, and concerts a month away, the Borough is like a bee hive now.  Calling Jim Dolan "Little Guy" is part of that.  The Nets currently enjoy increased media and print coverage; team apparel is being purchased and worn throughout the neighborhoods; and team comparisons, and debates between fans who have chosen sides, spring up more often now.  Of course, the ultimate factor determining success of failure for the Nets, Prokhorov, and Bruce Ratner; the man initially responsible for bringing the Nets to Brooklyn; is if the fans continue to pack Barclays Center, after the honeymoon effect is over.


During the recent free agent courting of Deron Williams between the Dallas Mavericks, who were making a strong pitch, and Brooklyn still being in the mix, Mikhail Prokhorov offered this assessment of the situation regarding the opposing bidding owner saying - " Let the best man win.  If he (Mark Cuban) wins, I will crush him with the kickboxing showdown."  Now that's my kind of owner!  Kick ass and ask questions later.  Or why bother asking questions at all?  Just kick ass.

Making cool quotes to the media and taking jabs at Jim Dolan, in the Nets current situation, works.  Isn't that what little brothers do?  Everyone from Mikhail Prokhorov on down realizes they will not be taking New York City from the Knicks any time soon.  That will be a process.  Although I felt Mr. Prokhorov could have started tweaking people back in Winter, he is here now, and fired-off one of his first returning barbs straight across MSG's bow.


All the above encompass just a small role in a greater part Prokhorov must play.  At the heart of everything is money, and he has a bunch of it.  The state of the Nets on March 2010; Groundbreaking Day at Barclays; was questionable at best.  While Bruce Ratner spearheaded the move to Brooklyn and the construction of Barclays Center, the project almost broke him; literally, figuratively, legally, and financially.  It was under these circumstances we were first introduced to Mikhail Prokhorov; the mysterious Russian billionaire/basketball fan, and now said in hindsight - savior.


A tremendous task lay ahead towards taking the talent level of 2010, and flipping it into a competitive product by Opening Day in Brooklyn, which is now exactly seventy days away.  In doing so, there was a huge price to pay, and some concessions to make.  After all the alterations Billy King made to the roster, Mikhail Prokhorov paid the bill in full.  Lest we forget, there is still a serious Luxury Tax attached to the Nets' player upgrades.  But the team representing Brooklyn stands to be a very good one right off the bat.  However, their surplus of draft picks, and their salary cap flexibility are all but gone now.  On paper at least, the Nets are a potential top-five contender in the Eastern Conference.  Will all these maneuverings really pay off?  We'll see.  But the bills have been paid in full by a guy who so far, has put his money where his mouth is.

BROOKLYN NETS

Mike.BTB

BKN Nets ~ It's Official; We Are Brooklyn

From the desk of:   THE HOOPS OF FLATBUSH

BROOKLYN NETS:  Ground-Breaking of Barclays Center was the First Real Symbolic Event Marking the Return of Major League Sports to Brooklyn.  This Weekend Marked Event Number Two; Our Name is Now Official.

 

....And by the way, the Owner is Finally Back in Town.

He's back!  But after chasing down the Russian presidency and admitting he would have put the team in a Trust, Mikhail Prokhorov's word can no longer be taken at face value.  For me, he returns to a state of disappointment over his winter long absence.  Not to mention, the Nets' 35th and final season in the Garden State should have been handled with a little more ceremony, gratitude, and appreciation for fans in New Jersey.  That's where owners come in.  That's their job.  I just felt there could have been more done towards both affects.  Now, I feel he must show "US" all he finally means business, again.


The Nets have been officially eliminated from this year's playoffs.  That's not a big deal.  We all understood the situation coming into the season.  But the real work now lies ahead trying to see if Deron Williams will remain with the club and move with the team to Brooklyn.  And as if the Dwight Howard situation hasn't been complicated enough, it has now been determined he has a herniated disk in his back.  As has been theorized throughout, Dwight Howard's status will still play a large role in Deron Williams' decision to stay or leave.  With proper treatment and next season's trade deadline possibilities, Dwight Howard may still yet get traded from Orlando and become a Net before the inaugural 2012-2013 season in Brooklyn is through.


Mikhail Prokhorov still says he's committed to delivering an NBA championship level team to Brooklyn.  According to his own initial mission statement, he's got three years left in what was originally announced at the 2010-2011 NBA Draft Lottery "show", as a five year plan to make that happen.


But ever since last season's Melo Drama played out to bring Carmelo Anthony to either one of New York City's soon to be two NBA teams, Mr. Prokhorov, in my opinion, due to his absence from daily operations, failed to satisfy his duties as owner during during a time when his club was, or is, supposedly still courting its' new fan base, and during a time the Knicks seemed in apparent disarray.


His subtle yet powerfully amusing foreign  billionaire charisma could have only helped in establishing the Nets' emerging presence within the city.  But the bravado Mikhail Prokhorov brought with him was lost on an entire season.  For an owner's part, there is a Media war with Jim Dolan to be won, and Mikhail Prokhorov failed to assert his presence in this town after so effectively arriving on the scene.  To me, the winter was an opportunity lost on him to befriend Brooklyn prior, and leading up to this Fall's Opening season inside brand new Barclays Center.  Billboards can only get one so far.


This was the weekend when the NBA's Board of Governors was to give their stamp of final approval  for the Nets' move into the Borough of Kings, and officially granting them their name - the Brooklyn Nets - the name minority share holder and Brooklynite, Jay-Z, wanted so dearly.  After April 30, 2012, the New Jersey Nets will cease to be.  The team officially becomes.....

The Brooklyn Nets

Photo taken with permission from:

JUNIOR'S CAFE and RESTAURANT

Flatbush Avenue, Brooklyn

 

This is a seminal moment for Kings County.  But the major pomp and celebration of the resurrection, and relaunch of pro sports in Brooklyn is largely still ahead of us.  That will all be handled with concerts at Barclays Center; a pre-season hockey game between the New Jersey Devils and the New York Islanders; and a few other select events.  Then Opening Night for the Nets will arrive and.....

For now, gaining their name remains a quietly observed event.

Barclays Center ~ April 2012

Barclays Center site in March 2010

April 2011

APRIL 2012

Mike.BTB

Knicks and Nets Open New Battle Front

From the desks of:

THE HOOPS OF FLATBUSH  and  DUTCH PANTS CAN'T JUMP

NEW JERSEY/BROOKLYN NETS

and NEW YORK KNICKERBOCKERS:

Back in the days when there was very little animosity between them; you know...., when the Nets seemed destined to stay in New Jersey forever, there was the occasional playoff clash between them and the Knicks.  That was when Chocolate Thunder; Otis Birdsong; and Buck Williams led the Nets while Bernard King played on the other side.  They clashed again during the Derrick Coleman/Kenny Anderson days and the Patrick Ewing era.

Then things changed between these teams.  Bruce Ratner purchased the New Jersey Nets and announced his plans to move the team to Brooklyn.  That ignited a new battle on may fronts as the Knicks were now faced with direct competition within the city limits for the first time in their history. 

The first major engagement started with the arenas.  Brooklyn was building a brand new state-of-the-art place.  As for Jim Dolan, after successfully beating down attempts to build a stadium on Manhattan's West Side for the Jets (which would have competed directly with the Garden for big ticket events), he was still in possession of a 1960's relic with sticky floors.  As the Nets' move to Brooklyn was one battle Jim Dolan couldn't win, he fought fire with fire.  He initiated renovations to Madison Square Garden.  In this blog I questioned whether the face-lift would have been undertaken so hastily if not for Barclays Center.  The obvious answer is no, because necessity is the mother of all invention; and in Dolan's case, the Nets forced his hand.




Enter Mikhail Prokhorov, and the battle of the capitalists was really on.  The new majority owner of the Nets struck first.  He had a giant mural painted on a building side on Eighth Avenue right by Madison Square Garden.  Me personally? -  I thought, what a stroke of Bravado!  But Dolan struck back with a billboard featuring Amare Stoudemire smack on the site of Ratner's Atlantic Yards.  Both teams continued dotting downtown Brooklyn as The Billboard Wars continued right up until the Lock-Out.




Then competition between the teams really escalated and a new battle front opened when both teams entered the Carmelo Anthony sweepstakes.  The Knicks won that one; securing their prize scorer.   Dolan threw everything he had at Denver to secure Melo's services because he knows the value of having stars in his arena.  Without them, the show doesn't go on.  Just ask Isiah Thomas.  But the Nets were not without a coup of their own.  Quite literally under the cover of night, they lifted Deron Williams from Utah.




So far the Nets have failed to acquire Dwight Howard from Orlando.  On a long list of things the Nets need most right now, Catching A Break, surely must be among the top two.  Last night they took on the Celtics in Boston without the services of Brook Lopez, Kris Humphries, and Deron Williams.




While the Nets have been getting brutalized by injuries and bad luck, the Knicks have just been brutal.  My shower curtains play better defense than the Knicks.  With the addition of Tyson Chandler, Defense was supposed to be this season's mantra.  So far, they've been a coalition of the unwilling and as resilient as wet toilet paper.




The Knicks have built a front court to rival any in the League.  But they have no point guard and their play is now reflecting their dire need for one.  Coach D'Antoni likes to get offensive shots off within seven seconds.  But for now, he's been forced into a half court game.




Suffice to say, nothing is going right for either team at the moment.  The Knicks can't get a comitment by the players on defense, and the Nets just can't get a committment out of Deron Williams yet.  Which brings us to the latest battle of this fledgling, soon-to-be inner city rivalry.  The ultimate battle of Dubiousness -




...The Battle for Last Place.




ATLANTIC DIVISION STANDINGS - a/o Thursday Morning:

1) - Philadelphia   3-2
2) - Boston   4-3
3) - Toronto   3-3
4) - KNICKS   2-4
5) - NETS   1-6







Mike.BTB

N.Y. RANGERS ~ Coach, Not GM, Has Team On Solid Ground

NEW YORK RANGERS: Blueshirts Extend Tortorella's Deal.  But He's No Company Man.

Eliminated by the Capitals...again.  So, where does the team who's never been beyond the second round of the playoffs under Glen Sather go from here?  Let's try this for starters; Don't blow it!  Mr. Glen Sather.., Now that you have a solid core, don't go trading them away for more fossils and Hockey's disabled vets.

Enter John Tortorella.  Whether you like him or not, I feel like he's exerted much more influence on Glen Sather than Glen has on Coach.  Even Stevie Wonder could have seen that the General Manager of the Rangers hitched up the same old wagon, year after year, to a revolving team of nags ready for the glue factory.  If you think that's exaggerating things a bit..., ask yourself when was the last time we were better than a seventh place seed under Sather?  Now ask yourself when was the first time?

If it weren't for John Tortorella, many of the kids who got promoted and played extremely well would have been gone at the trade deadline.  I'm convinced of that.  Glen Sather did hire the man responsible for drafting the current talent pool though.  I cede him that.  He replaced Don Maloney with Gordie Clark and the drafting has indeed gotten better; evidenced by this year's pool.  But Sather would have surely sent them packing considering all the injuries the Rangers were sustaining as last season's trade-deadline approached.  And he surely would have committed us to even more salary-cap hell.

So, when we look at the Rangers now, there's the team we started out the season with and Glen Sather's original idea of a good time.  Then there is the team we finished up with; the young, spry team of Blueshirts, that kept the team afloat in the face of all those said injuries, and the one's who have Coach Tort's stamp all over them.  This is a classic, Glass Half Full/Half Empty scenario.

I'm Glass Half Full, and have a vested interest in Coach Tort's vision.  It's Glen Sather I don't trust.  But now that Coach Torts has a new three year pact (was that ever made official?), I couldn't be happier to have someone behind the bench who can and does exert influence on Glen Sather.  Tom Renney never could.  He was subservient.  Not Coach Torts - He's no Company Man.

Behind the scenes, I believe Torts is the one calling all the on-ice shots now.  It's not because Glen Sather has all of a sudden become an imp.  No, ...it's because Coach Torts is just that bullish about what he's preaching.  The Ranger GM isn't just handing over day laborers to the Coaches anymore and expecting them to figure things out.  Do you think Coach Torts would operate like that?  He'd quit first.  He now has a list of needs for Glen Sather to fill.  Because there's only one plan in place at the moment; - And that's Tortorella's! I've never heard Glen Sather speak of a plan.  Maybe that's because he doesn't have to.  But ever since Coach Torts got here, it's all he's talked about.  And for as long as Coach insists his demands on Sather be met and Sather obliges, we'll be better for it.
If Jim Dolan continues to refuse to hold Glen Sather accountable for his record, or even request that he speak with the Media...ever!... then, Coach Tortorella is the perfect coach to have in the fold, if indeed we're stuck with Sather for eternity.




Mike.BTB

N.J. Nets vs. N.Y. Knicks ~ Don't Ignore The Buzz

New York Knicks vs. New Jersey Nets:  You're Lying If You Don't Believe There's A Different Buzz About This Now.

The naysayers can down-play this all they want.  "They" will point to the fact the 6-11 Nets still play in front of sparse crowds in Newark and to their abysmal record last season.  The Nets also had their off-season hopes unrealized to a large extent while the Knicks overhauled their roster with 10 new players including Amare Stoudemire.  I will cede the fact this is not the sexiest rivalry in the Metro area, the NBA, or in Sports.  I know.  The fact both franchises have struggled mightily in recent years pretty much means both teams and fan bases are starting from scratch in a sense.  The Nets had to dismantle their Conference Championship teams and drifted into obscurity out in the No-Man's MeadowLands.  The Knicks' fan base just wanted to get as far away from the Isiah Thomas Inferno as possible.  Madison Square Garden even "had to" initiate a complete renovation because of the damage wrought by Demolition Zeke.  And of course, the building of the Barclays Center in Brooklyn should not go under-spoken.

Do you see it?  If you don't, you're not looking.  The future of this rivalry is very bright because both teams are loosely tied together in a race to be better; not necessarily better than each-other..., just better as a franchise. 

Knick Fan; Net Fan ~ Win, Win.  You'll see.  It's still a vision.  But things are in place for both franchises to have far better days ahead of them than today's 9-9 and 6-11 editions...(namely Cap Space).

Both teams are headed in positive directions.  I myself think the Nets took a major hit when Rod Thorn stepped down and took the Philly job.  But they are still organizationally sound and now reinvigorated with new owner Mikhail Prokhorov.  Avery Johnson is a damn good coach.  Brett Yormark and Billy King still form a smart front office.  The young players on the court, like Lopez will develop and with ample Cap Space, in time, the roster will be augmented.  Right?  We'll see.  In the mean-time, No Sleep Till Brooklyn.

We know the Knicks; - Zeke we hope.., but can never really know for sure, is in the past (?).  Donnie Walsh is good people to have running things now.   Coach D, Amare and LANDRY FIELDS!... ~ We see what's going on and we like the progress.  Right? (I have my issues with Coach D, but I'm cool).

The possibilities for two years from now are pretty bright IMO.  For the Nets, the Knicks, the fans, two Boroughs and the city as a whole, I see good times ahead as fans and as this rivalry emerges (re-emerges?).

Admit this, the days of considering these teams neighborly will end when the Nets settle in Brooklyn.

By all means let tonight's game between the Knicks and Nets serve as a litmus test to see how warm the water is.  This the first time they will be facing each other on the court since the teams started The BillBoard Wars.  Let's see how the players react to each-other tonight.  Let's gauge crowd reaction too.  We'll see where we are with this thing and build from there, here; tonight.  Why not?  Like I said, both teams are positive forward now, not backwards negative.  Coach Johnson is going to Coach a good game.  Bank on it.
Coach D seems to have all the players' attention and functioning.  The game should be a good one.

You have to admit because of the BillBoard Wars, we've all spoken more about the Nets and the Knicks, together, in the same sentences, in conversations, than I'm willing to bet we ever did before.  Am I right? 

Dolan, the Planned West Side Stadium Wrecker, chose to fight his fight with signage and commercials on his MSG Channels thus far.  Mikhail Prokhorov likes to just tell us what he thinks and it's usually a great listen.  He most recently said he doesn't care to be like the Knicks,  nyet..rather, the Lakers were the team to emulate.  He provides classic stuff.  These mighty men of "power" and wealth can only serve to keep us entertained.

You have to admit, and not ignore the BUZZ to this game and these teams today.  It's a low-level buzz, but a buzz none-the-less. 

What started when Bruce Ratner announced plans to bring the team to Brooklyn was just a flare in the middle of nowhere.  No one ever could get a feel for the news with all the "what ifs".  But, here we are.  I drove by the Barclays site today.  There's steal beams rising like mighty Red Woods. We build from this and keep moving forward.

Enjoy the game and start thinking about this match-up in a different way.

NEW JERSEY NETS

vs.

NEW YORK KNICKS

Madison Square Garden

33rd Street and 7th Avenue

NEW YORK CITY

Mike.BTB

NYKnicks ~ Zeke May Never Haunt Halls of MSG Again; Link

Every Basketball minded fan around the city has by now, no doubt, heard about Isiah Thomas' fantastic revisionist tales and the buff-job he's trying to spin about his days at MSG.  What sheer lunacy!  Many in and around the media have been tossing out the word delusional to describe Zeke's state of mind.  Michael Kay conducted an interview with Isiah on the heals of the initial shock waves Isiah's comments created soon after speaking with Ian O'Conner earlier for Ian's ESPN.com.  Point ~ Michael Kay was right when he said delusional was the absolute wrong word to describe Zeke's state.

Me?  I'd use Machiavellian; as Machiavellian as he's ever been and exactly the way we remember him.

Delusional?  Hardly.  Zeke was, as always, just being true to himself.  I heard nothing during Michael Kay's interview nor read anything in Ian O'Connor's transcript which leads me to believe Isiah Thomas was acting unlike anyone but, Isiah Thomas.  You can read Ian O'Connor's article HERE.

This day, his tact of choice was that of victim trying to vindicate his good name, playing on people's sympathies to again one day be in a position to avenge a wrong perpetrated upon him by the NBA; namely mocking his executive achievements and stripping him of his post.  What makes this day from left field any different from any post-game Q&A he played host to while he was Sith Lord of MSG?  He took responsibility for nothing 'wrong' then, and paints pictures of the past resembling a Botticelli now.

Above all, what has Knick fan's anxieties on high alert today, is the closeness, bond and friendship Isiah Thomas maintains with Sir James Dolan; Rey of MSG and our New York Knicks.

Donnie Walsh might be calling the shots now but we learned and know well, Zeke never really went away.  The scepter of his possible return has been making the hair of Knicks fans stand up from Coney Island to City Island, electrocuted and shocked that Zeke still, somehow, arches into our affairs in the third year after his removal from office.

Well I have good news for you Knick fans.  Please read this great article by Adrian Wojnarowski at Yahoo! Sports.  This article might, once and for all time, put our fears to rest regarding Zeke's MSG Come-back and possible Swan Song at the New Garden.

If what this article says is true, there will be no Rising like the Phoenix for Isiah.  In the mean-time there is only lunacy..., just like in Hitchcock's, The Birds.





Mike.BTB

NYK ~ Knickerbocker Knockin'

Clear your throats; -  Use your best Gus Johnson impersonation and yell out, "I'm Jim Dolan! And I fire good radio announcers!  Ah..HA!

The Knicks fired their radio voice, Gus Johnson, citing Gus' many outside interests interfered with his Knick responsibilities.

While that may be true in management's view, I have news for the Knicks.  Gus Johnson was one of the very few reasons to pay attention to the Knicks through-out the Zeke Era and into the present.  Donnie Walsh has come a long way towards changing Knick fan's perceptions (like me).  By the time Donnie was brought in, this organization was a complete and utter mess and at least Gus Johnson made the Knicks a good listen because they certainly weren't a good watch.  I listen to a preponderance of Knicks games on radio because I enjoyed Gus Johnson's call while I had something else on the TV.  I would watch the "rewind" after the evening games wound down. 

Dolan fired a big asset to the company because at least Gus kept guys like me tethered ever so precariously to this team, of which I have always been a big fan since early childhood and the Lonnie Sheldon days. But the Knicks have tried my very last nerve over the last 9 years and the Nets coming to Brooklyn is a very conflicting situation for me which hasn't boded well for the Knicks. 

And (Dolan) still is not done.  I believe he doesn't like his organization in the hands of someone David Stern kinda nudged Dolan to hire.  And Dolan is looking for an opening to re-org again; his way.

This is the same Jim Dolan who continues to allow Zeke to lurk in the theoretical back alleys and shadows of MSG, hidden from our view; waiting to rise again like the Phoenix out of the renovation dust in the new Madison Square Garden. This is the same Jim Dolan who won't allow Donnie Walsh to bring in Chris Mullin. Why? Because Zeke still has Dolan's attention.

And that's where the Knicks lost a little more of mine (attention).


A part time Gus Johnson is better than a no-time Gus Johnson.  Mike Crispino was named Gus' replacement.  Really?  This is like going from the Patrick Ewing Era to the Kieth Van Horn Era.  C'mon!

Really?

The Donnie Walsh Era has a very short shelf-life folks.  We knew that going into this.  Jim Dolan signing off on Gus Johnson's dismissal is a very stark reminder of that.   Why?  The guy upstairs is just dying to get Donnie out of here.

...But that's just me thinking out loud.


UPDATED Friday October 22nd ~ The next day after all the reports Gus got fired, he could be heard on radio saying he did not get fired.  And as of today's media reports, they've been revised to inform the Knicks and Gus Johnson could not come to an agreement on a new contract.

This still doesn't change what I said.
BTB out.



Mike

GadZOOKS!! ZEKE is Back!!

Isiah Thomas is back in the employ of the New York Knicks Front Office.  Huh?  Kind of anyway.  OK...we're not going to over react are we?  Maybe.  Let's see what we're working with here.

Many teams found their Path towards Displeasure with Stephan Marbury a rather short one.  Zeke traded to get him.  He brought him to Broadway and decided to build around him.  Zeke also hired Larry Brown to a five year deal to be coach of this Knick team.  The short version is Zeke allowed Marbury to circumvent every step of the chain of command starting with Brown.  Marbury went to Zeke direct.  There was no Brown for Stephon.  There was an Intern in the back of an Escalade though.  (DOH!).   Brown was powerless against Marbury's self-absorption and disregard for proper channels.  What drove Coach Brown more insane than anything was Marbury's reluctance to adhere to Brown's system.  Coach Larry Brown was fired after one year and the Knicks ate a lot off money on that contract.

Remember the Continental Basketball Association?  Zeke is widely regarded to be the one responsible for driving that League into the ground and having it end up in bankruptcy.

Does anyone even remember the Lenny Wilkens days at this point?  I thought so.

Remember when he stepped in as coach?  How he had more plays designed for Ms. Sanders than he could muster for the Knick with 7.3 seconds left in the game and no time-outs?  Let's face that fact too...he didn't have any set plays and he just wasn't a good coach at all.

The Sexual Harassment issue?  Hmmm.  He cost the owner $11 million Dolan Dollars to settle with Ms. Sanders.  But he also brought shame to a very proud and long standing stalwart of the NBA.

Continuing along his path of financial mushroom clouds, Zeke traded away any and all our expiring contracts and plunged us into Cap Hell Abyss.  There was a window when he had a chance to move the team away from that.  But Zeke slammed that window shut and really did a job on this franchise that had ramifications for years to come; as impactful and harmful as Ewing's contract set this organization back initially.  I'll cut him a break and not even dissect the Eddie Curry trade and other dubious moves he made, to include torpedoing our lottery pick(s).

There were rumors not to long ago that Donnie Walsh would retire and Zeke would be named the next GM of the Knicks.  Then again, I heard that same rumor about Allen Houston.  Donnie Walsh said he isn't going anywhere until his contract is up.

Can I, as a Knick fan, have Zeke as my GM, after everything that transpired with Zeke the first time around?

NO!  He wielded too much power around here, abused it and drove this franchise into chaos.  The Knicks were a moribund organization and a laughing stock under his stewardship.

Because of him I completely became unplugged.  I closed my eyes on the NBA.  I forgot and the who's who of basketball rosters changed and I found myself literally out of touch with the NBA..  I finally have my interest increasing with steady upticks in curiosity.  I'm always a KNICKS fan OK?  But I just had to ignore for my own mental sanity.

If he is meant to be a periphery entity behind the scenes at MSG; not seen nor heard ~ if he is here back in Dolan's inner circle to add input on talent evaluation for the draft and otherwise......(*sigh*)...If Dolan must do so...Zeke is good at it, so I guess it's fine because Dolan has this affinity for Zeke that boggles the mind of greater Metropolis.

So the guy drafted well.  (Another sigh)  Zeke found a lot of talent on the rear end of the first pound selections the Knicks were positioned with.  Somehow he drafted firecracker Nate Robinson, David Lee, Trevor Ariza and Channing Frey in slots where your not supposed to get that kind of talent.  He drafted other nice names and he's getting the respect for that here.

I just can't have him making that rumor come true by becoming the GM of the Knicks.  No.

Mike.BTB

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John Mara & Jeff Wilpon Speak-out..kinda. HEY DOLAN!!!

John Mara, my dude! - Ripped into his team at season's end and said the results of this season was akin to a
2-14 pathetic effort.  He is angry and he wants everyone working for Big Blue to know it. Good FOR HIM!  And good for us too!

Today, Omar Minaya, but more importantly Jeff Wilpon tried showing a less dark disposition with regards to Ownership's wishes, plans, direction and fan perceptions.  Whatever.  Normally it wouldn't take much for me to go into a tangent about the Wilpons (and by the way I want to hear from FRED).  But today, although I would've liked to see him a little less rosy about his MetLook, Jeff said and touched on everything I usually complain about with regards to METropolis.  I'm agreeable with what Jeff and Omar had to say today at the JASON BAY press conference.

OK....uh

HEY DOLAN!!!?  You wanna say something to us?  My other owners are talking to me loud and clear as of today.  Care to add something to this conversation?  Could you explain to me why Glen Sather's BLUEprint for perpetual mediocracy is so appealing to you?  Just wondering.  Or are you just going to jack-up my cable bill to pay for your MSG renovation?  Couldn't you just get "This Old House"?.  I can't wait to read my future cable bills for the answer to that!

This guy "theDolan(s)" owns my favorite hockey team, my favorite basketball team until the NETS come to BROOKLYN when I'll have to rethink things, the arena I go see and root their play in, the channel I watch their games on and the cable outlet I get my service from.  Do you think we deserve to hear from him more often?  I do!!

I heard from an angry John Mara and a bland Jeff Wilpon in the last two days.  Hey Dolan, drop your guitar for a few moments and tell me why the Rangers are spinning their tires in the Glen-Sather-Cap-Mud.

You've been trying to take Cablevision private for a while now.  You spun-off the Rangers/Knicks/MSG from the parent company.  Why do I get the feeling my cable bill is going to increase once the MSG renovation gets into full swing?  Talk to me JIM!

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