At Knicks’ Facility, Hopeful Talk and Lessons Learned (or Maybe Not)

Seriously, does anyone REALLY think Mills and Perry will improve the team so it's not a laughingstock? And with the team "nucleus" available now?

And it's also utterly bewildering why anyone would shell out (lots of!) money to see this team play, at this point. There sure must be a lot of corporate types and glitterati-wannabes who'll see anything if they think it's connected to the limelight...

And meanwhile, the Dolans hold NYC hostage to the Penn Station travesty underneath the Garden by their refusal to move the circus, so a decent transit hub can be rebuilt! And get tax breaks in the process too!

Once I heard Scott Perry say that he and Dolan 'were on the same page' and would 'work closely together' I knew the Knicks were doomed.

Dolan is by far the worst owner in professional sports, even beating out the parade of horribles that have owned the Cleveland Browns.
He interfers, he makes bad trades, he throws money away on aging, fading stars and when the team flounders, he does the same stuff all over again.

I for one will not be buying tickets to or watching this train wreck any time soon.

Can we stop the whining already? Yes, Jackson made his share of mistakes. DRose is an overpaid loser who doesn't care a fig for D. Noah was another waste of money. A few other minor deals were also ill-considered.

But he was saddled with Melo - that's on the "genius" owner, the dauphin, who no doubt pressured Jackson to resign the guy who NY paid for through its nose in young talent and future draft picks.

So how about we look at the other side of the Jackson ledger?

Porzingis: Barring injury or abduction by Martians, a budding star, maybe superstar.

Hernangomez: The real jewel. A second round "stash" pick who is going to be our anchor in the pivot for the next decade with the potential of also reaching all-star status.

Kuz: The guy's got game and is a terrific boost to the squad off the bench.

Ron Baker: Another unpolished jewel. Huge upside and great team chemistry. Athletic, talented and smart.

Unfortunately, NY lost Holliday in the off-season but he was a good player as well.

Frank K: Jury's still out. The kid's just 18 (or 19) and I haven't seen him play but every talent scout has said great things about him. Hey, at least he's not the second coming of Frederic Weis.

With a little luck, next year's team could do some damage. For all of their drama last year, don't forget how many games we lost by fewer than 6 or 7 points.

Long story. short, the Knicks are going to be a lot better than the media predicts. And Jackson is the one who put the pieces in place.

The Knicks should promote Carmelo Anthony to team President or some other management position. Then the entire Knicks management team should go into "isolation". That would allow the head coach and players succeed, Man, it has been very painful being a Knicks fan the last 17+ years.

Didn't Mills LOSE the sexual harassment case brought by Anucha Brown Sanders?? Add that to the list of "executive accomplishments"...

Why NY hoops fans continue to support the Knicks by buying tickets and why the sports radio hosts spend so much airtime on the Knicks is a real mystery to me. The franchise is terrible, the owner is terrible and the team is woebegone. Let's hope the owner keeps his mitts off the Rangers (who are a highly successful NHL Franchise).

Look at NBA franchises that turned losing/mediocrity into winning one or more championships:

San Antonio after Peter Holt bought the team
Dallas after Mark Cuban
Golden State after Joe Lacob and Peter Guber

The Knicks need a multibillionaire to make Dolan an offer he can't refuse. Whatever it takes: overpay by 2 billion, give JD a lifelong annual residency for his band at MSG-- anything to convince him to sell.

Knicks journalists: please list the best (or best 3) personnel moves Mills has made since he came to the Knicks over 15 years ago.

You wrote:
"The Knicks actually possess a sturdy nucleus of young talent, from Kristaps Porzingis to Willy Hernangomez to, inshallah, the Knicks’ yearling point guard, 18-year-old Frank Ntilikina. The team also possesses its first-round draft picks going forward. This is in the standard operating manual for most good franchises and for the Knicks, it passes for genius of a rarefied sort."

ALL of that upside is due to Phil Jackson. Maybe you don't like that he was too successful as a coach, maybe you still think of him as the enemy who beat the Knicks in the 93 eastern conference finals when most believe the Knicks would have beaten Phoenix in the Finals (easily), maybe you didn't like that he ignored the press and this is your revenge.

If KP & Willy stay in NY for years & become Dirk & Marc Gasol & lead the team deep into the playoffs it will be largely thanks to Phil. If this years pick becomes an All Star in a few years too...

'Maybe not'? the understatement of Dolan's reign

They lose, lose and lose some more yet keep selling out the Garden? Silly rabbits.

As long as Dolan owns the team and likes basketball (as opposed to hockey where he leaves the NYR alone), this team will be difficult to turn into a winner. The Knicks should let Perry call the shots, not merely make recommendations, and resist temptation to play the short game. They must hold their draft picks, and logically trade Carmelo for even more picks and young talent. What a shame to have such a poor winning record, going on for like close to 20 years?, in such a great basketball town. At what point does the CEO of a losing company finally get voted out by the shareholders (can't seem to happen in this context), or step down due to shame and embarrassment? (not part of the temperament). So frustrating.

The 'secret' to the Knicks's 'un-success' is Dolan!!!!

Never a winner as long as Dolan is in charge. Is he still taking advice from Isiah Thomas? Then there's the curse of the tax break -- 10 years going on 45 and money to the team translates into more losses. Time for the Knicks to become responsible citizens and pay their share, and perhaps that will translate into success on the court.

Thanks for such a thoughtful article. A classic case of mediocre executives and corporate culture well described.

One question I have is, why does Rangers management seem like the polar opposite?

Both teams are owned by the same man.