There’s always another way to look at every story, and the Donnie Walsh “I love Chris Mullin and would love to hire him if we had a job opening” explanation is no different.
True, the Knicks already have Glen Grunwald (minus the GM title) on the docket for this season, and there’s no need for Isiah Thomas to apologize for employing him; maintenance-free, low-profile, the former Raptors supervisor is very salary cap capable, among other duties.
Nevertheless, there’s a much larger dynamic for Walsh being unable to justify appointing Mullin — the three-year guaranteed portion of the team president’s contract expires at season’s end . . . actually, before.
So, it’s reasonable to deduce Walsh recognizes it wouldn’t be fair to the key parties if he signed someone significant whom a successor — I suspect we all know who has long been boxing out for that position — would be obliged to inherit.
In other words, James Dolan is not opposing Mullin’s employment simply because Walsh is not asking for authorization. And that will never happen, obviously, unless Camp Cablevision’s commander exercises Walsh’s fourth-year option.
I think Walsh officially put his signature on a Knicks document April 1. Therefore, it’s practical to presume Dolan must decide by then whether he’s convinced Walsh’s master plan is effectively progressing and Walsh is well enough (getting around the world efficiently in a walker these days) to continue to oversee the overhaul . . . or re-transfer his support to Thomas, whom he’s obsessed with helping.
Either way, Walsh is contractually obligated to remain on the job until July 30, if I’m not mistaken, in order to evaluate/negotiate with next summer’s wave of free agents, namely Carmelo Anthony, if available.
I realize Nyets owner Mikhail Prokhorov had a dissimilar approach last summer regarding unsigned team president Rod Thorn, but if Dolan trusts Walsh enough to keep him in charge of the draft and the recruitment of coveted mercenaries, you’d think he would insist on locking him up for another year (or two?) before allowing him to attend to such critical commerce.
This much is certain: Walsh has no intention of leaving the Knicks’ reconstruction site unless unwelcome. He wants to finish what he started. This is the first Knicks team in his three years he can call his own and he likes what he sees.
New Yorkers, of course, know only too well how long such remodeling projects take to complete.
* Good news, boys and girls.
The NBA’s most infamous Arenas is coming to the World’s Most Famous Arena.
Fined 50-large for last week’s rendition of “Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire,” Gilbert Arenas
— polygraph in tow — may or may not join the Wizards (depending on the condition of an alleged pulled groin) when they visit the Sexual Harassment Hacienda this evening.
Tonight also is the first local look at No. 1 draft choice John Wall
. Valedictorian of John Calipari
‘s last One-and-Done class, the souped-up guard has been better than advertised: five preseason starts with averages of 35.4 minutes, 15.6 points and 8.6 assists.
Thursday night he played Milwaukee’s Brandon Jennings
to a standoff (Bucks won), going for 15 and 11. Wall is so good, Kentucky nearly matched Washington’s contract offer.
Shocking the Bobcats on Friday cut Javaris Crittenton
, the critically acclaimed co-star of Le Cage aux Firearms. After all, how often do you find another guy capable of taking the place of two people . . . Smith and Wesson.
Speaking of Hush, Hush, Sweet Charlotte, how disingenuous did Next Town Brown
come off during his Allen-Aid appeal?
“Nobody who has done as much as [Allen Iverson
] has done for this league should have to be in Turkey playing, to end his career,” Brown blathered. “We have one of the most special players ever in our sport who still has something left. I feel terrible about this. That is not how he should be ending his career.
“I wish I was in a position to help him, where it wouldn’t affect the other guys I’m coaching.”
Let’s mull this over for a moment. Brown, Michael Jordan
and the Bobcats felt that bringing Quick Draw Crittenton, who owns no discernable NBA resume, into camp was worth a PF Flyer, but wouldn’t even consider the Artist Formerly Know as The Answer.
Iverson responded to all this by saying that anyone who has done so much for the league and still has a lot left shouldn’t end their career coaching in Charlotte.
* Tracy McGrady
says it could be 20 games before he gets into tip-top basketball shape, but guarantees he’ll be ready by the second round of the playoffs.
Kobe
says the Big Three coming together in Miami did not raise his motivation to win another championship, but instead made him wonder why Pat Riley
gave up on Michael Beasley
so quickly.
Shaq
cracked on the NBA officiating crackdown by saying that “if you give those guys that much control you might as well sell their jerseys at Foot Locker.” The league doesn’t think this is a good idea, but is considering selling their whistles at Radio Shack.
Dwyane Wade
testified that he’s not the gun-toting, drug-using, wife-beating child abuser that his wife portrayed him to be in court documents. However, he did admit that she was being truthful when she said he needed to work on his shot selection and off-the-ball defense.
Contrary to a Daily News report, Hornets minority owner Gary Chouest
has not bailed on his objective to become the majority shareholder. Team officials continue to work directly with him to make that a reality, maintains someone in the conversation.
“When the first rescued miner came up he didn’t see his shadow,” reports column collaborator Richie Kalikow
. “That means six more weeks without Ricky Rubio
.”