Isiah Thomas’ official role as part-time Knicks consultant lasted less than a week, but he’s not going away. Not by a longshot.
After the NBA blocked Thomas serving as both FIU head coach and Knicks consultant, owner James Dolan gave his strongest indication Thomas will one day seize a prominent front-office position, perhaps succeeding lame duck Donnie Walsh as president.
In effect, Thomas went from official consultant to unofficial consultant yesterday when Thomas rescinded his consulting contract before the NBA took action.
A defiant Dolan brazenly admitted he will still “solicit his views” and Thomas “will always have strong ties to me and the team.”
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With Walsh enduring health issues and just one guaranteed year left on his contract, Dolan made certain the Isiah cloud won’t lift entirely, especially if the club falters early. Dolan has until March 31 to exercise the 2011-12 option on Walsh’s pact.
“Although I’m disappointed that Isiah will not be working with the Knicks as a consultant, I continue to believe in his basketball knowledge, including his ability to judge talent,” Dolan wrote. “He’s a good friend of mine and of the organization and I will continue to solicit his views. He will always have strong ties to me and the team.
“I also believe Donnie Walsh has done a terrific job since joining the Knicks and my tremendous respect for him has only grown since he’s joined the organization,” Dolan added. “I’m confident that the work that Donnie, Coach Mike D’Antoni and their staffs have done this summer has the team poised for long-term success.”
The Post reported on Sunday that Walsh was livid with Isiah’s hiring, which came after Walsh told Thomas in a meeting he did not want him in the organization. Now Walsh still has to live with Thomas in Dolan’s ear.
The Post reported last month Walsh could retire soon, but he’s fiercely denied it. Yesterday, Walsh’s name was conspicuously absent from the Knicks release and he did not return calls.
Thomas released a statement more contrite about his Knicks’ failure than ever before. Thomas announced he had “rescinded his contract” with the team, and added, “One of the biggest regrets of my life is that the Knicks didn’t perform up to the standards the fans had every right to expect while I was in charge. I take full responsibility for that. I was very much looking forward to this unique opportunity to help the organization do what I do best: find basketball talent.”
The remarks were the largest admission of failure he has ever made and likely issued to try to get into better graces with the fans, whose reaction to his part-time return was overwhelmingly vicious, creating a firestorm of awful publicity the past five days.
When hired by FIU, Thomas sounded smug when addressing the Knicks disaster, pointing out that Jeff Van Gundy and Pat Riley also did not win championships. He had never shown remorse to Knick fans until yesterday, a humbling statement from a man itching to return to the Knicks.
While completely back at FIU, he had admitted this week he’d leave for a full-time consultant’s job. Two years ago, Thomas bragged to confidants he would one day run the Knicks again.
“After speaking with Commissioner Stern and Knicks executives, it has become apparent that my new agreement violates certain NBA bylaws,” Thomas said in his statement. “Because of this, I have decided to rescind my contract with the team. . . . I want to thank them for affording me this opportunity.”
If Dolan made him full-time now, it would go against Walsh’s wishes.
The conflicts were plentiful and scores of NBA executives complained to Stern. Stern announced last night that because Thomas rescinded his consulting agreement, “it is not necessary for the league to take any formal action. . . . However, we have reminded the Knicks of NBA rules that prohibit team personnel, including consultants, from having contact with players not eligible for the draft.”
NBA personnel also can’t attend high school games or have contact with high school students unless in all-star contests. As The Post reported Monday, at least two NBA owners complained to the league.
Thomas, in an unofficial capacity, helped in the recruitment of Amar’e Stoudemire and met with a member of LeBron James’ entourage.