If there was a roar of joy heard ’round Indianapolis last weekend, it must have come from Donnie Walsh’s home.
Walsh, the former Knicks president and now a club consultant, was thrilled to see his successor Glen Grunwald pull off the Tyson Chandler acquisition. Walsh believes the clever heist of adding the 7-foot-1 defensive center in a three-team sign-and-trade could turn into the best deal in Knicks history, if it leads to snapping the franchise’s 38-year championship drought.
“I think Tyson is the perfect pickup for the Knicks and fills the biggest need for the team,’’ Walsh told The Post yesterday. “It was a great job by Glen and may go down as one of the best pickups in the history of the Knicks. The trade was what the team absolutely needed to be a franchise with championships goals.’’
It is not the traditional Big 3, as Chandler, 29, has never made the All-Star Game. But a Chandler-Amar’e Stoudemire-Carmelo Anthony frontcourt — aka “The Broadway Bigs’’ — gives the Knicks the league’s best frontline, with the ex-Maverick becoming the piece that potentially makes them a championship threat.
“It really elevates the team for now and the future,’’ Walsh said. “Tyson will be great for chemistry with Amar’e and Melo and the rest.’’
The best trade in Knicks’ history has been widely rated as the acquisition of the defense-first Dave DeBusschere for Howard Komives and Walter Bellamy on Dec. 19, 1968. DeBusschere has been lauded as the final piece to their first-ever championship in 1969-70.
That core won two championships, but perhaps the second ring in 1972-73 would not have occurred without their second-best trade — acquiring Earl Monroe from the Baltimore Bullets for David Stallworth, Mike Riordan and cash.
In getting Chandler, Grunwald had to think out of the box in giving up on their Master Plan of saving their 2012 cap space to sign a third superstar — Chris Paul, Dwight Howard or Deron Williams.
But the cap was still manageable enough for Grunwald to seize the opportunity afforded by the NBA’s new amnesty clause in waiving starting point guard Chauncey Billups and using Ronny Turiaf’s and Andy Rautins’ contracts in a sign-and-trade to clear enough cap space now and give up on the 2012 pursuit.
“The cap space in 2012 allowed the team to add a key player now — or in 2012,’’ said Walsh. “The opportunity came now. And Glen did a great job of accomplishing it. Cap maintenance is a priority for every team so you can be flexible.’’
Walsh, who stepped down after last June’s draft, had inherited the worst cap situation in the NBA when he took over in 2008. “I am happy for the franchise and Glen,’’ Walsh added. “They deserve good things to happen.’’
After the well-rounded Mavericks, keyed by Chandler in the middle, beat Miami’s Dream Team in the Finals last June, Walsh admitted to The Post that the three-superstar alignment isn’t always the best blueprint.
In a foreshadow for the club’s next free agency, Walsh said after the Finals, “You really need all the pieces or roles filled to win a championship. The stars do what they do. They score. But a lot of the basketball game is being won by the guys that fill in the blanks. We need those guys.’’
Walsh, who says he’s “fine health-wise’’ after undergoing hip-replacement surgery a year ago, hopes to visit the Garden by then, after things “settle down.’’ He’s been on the phone with Grunwald in his new role and planned to help in recruiting if the Knicks decided to preserve their 2012 cap space and fill in the much-needed center role with Pacers’ rugged veteran Jeff Foster, whom Walsh drafted.
“I have talked to Donnie,’’ Grunwald said. “He was on standby to help with some recruiting if we went another direction. I’ve talked to him several times over the free-agent period.’’
And nobody could be more delighted with the way it’s turned out than Walsh.
“It is an exciting time of the year.”