KUDOS to Donnie Walsh for being Donnie Walsh. Kudos to James Dolan for not being James Dolan.
If you haven’t noticed, Dolan has backed off dramatically in the decision-making process. The Knicks owner did not fly across the country to Phoenix to accompany the team president to wine and dine Mark Jackson a few weeks ago. Dolan didn’t fly back to Phoenix to court Mike D’Antoni. Dolan didn’t jet to Houston to sweet talk Avery Johnson.
This wasn’t Donnie Dolan. It’s Walsh’s show now, solo, and it’s why he landed the big fish, the Suns super coach Saturday morning. D’Antoni was in a vulnerable state after the Spurs rocked the Suns in the first round, his rift with Phoenix owner Robert Sarver and rookie general manager Steve Kerr reaching a breaking point.
D’Antoni, who flew into New York late last night to sign the contract today, felt he needed a change and Walsh was a sight for sore eyes. The longtime, 67-year-old presidential prototype was the stable, supportive voice he needed.
“He made Mike feel his interest was genuine and unconditional and after the Suns experience, it was very appreciated,” a D’Antoni confidant said.
“He was confortable with Donnie,” another member of D’Antoni’s inner circle added. “It was a gut feeling.”
The Bulls’ roster is much better, much more suited for the “Seven Seconds or Less” offense. But D’Antoni didn’t even ask the Bulls for a counter-offer after Walsh sprang into action Saturday morning – which has infuriated Chicago GM John Paxson.
After the season ended, Sarver and Kerr met with D’Antoni and wanted him to hire a defensive assistant to replace Marc Iavoroni, who left a void in the staff after the 2006-2007 season when he became Memphis’ head coach. They wanted him to stress defense more. They wanted him to be harder on the players.
All Walsh wanted was D’Antoni, the guy who posted a 232-96 record in his four full seasons as the Suns head coach, the guy who led the Suns to two Western Conference finals.
Isiah Thomas does not get this catch. Scott Layden does not make this hire. Walsh does. And Dolan, who finally has realized he meddled too much since Dave Checketts departed in 2001, stayed out of it. The last thing D’Antoni needed to see was another owner telling him what he should and shouldn’t do.
Dolan owns the team, can do what he wants. But he also is smart enough to realize his omnipresence and micromanaging weren’t working. To defend Thomas, having to deal with the daily conversations with Dolan probably wasn’t easy. It may have led to some of Thomas’ daffy press conferences with the media, with him saying things for Dolan’s benefit.
We believe D’Antoni will not have to abide by the old Dolan media policy in which he’s not allowed to criticize players in the media unless he does it to their face first. The head coach does not need to be censored.
It’s a new Knicks world now. Dolan has promised commissioner David Stern he would spend what needed to be spent to turn this thing around. And Dolan may have been advised by Stern to offer up his money but not his basketball advice. Even Dolan admits he’s more a hockey guy.
The only time Dolan got involved in this coaching search came when Walsh asked him for permission to offer D’Antoni four years, $24 million. Walsh didn’t have to ask twice.
The faces of the franchise now are Walsh and D’Antoni. Let’s do it.