The majority of James Dolan’s time as the owner of the New York Knicks has been under a black cloud for both him and the organization. Since making the NBA Finals in 1999, Dolan has mostly overseen a Knicks team that has been a laughing stock on and off of the basketball court. In 2003, Dolan appointed Isiah Thomas as the Knicks president of basketball operations and he proceeded to run the team into the ground. During Thomas’ time with the Knicks, the team never won more than 39 games in a regular season and they only made one playoff appearance. Then of course there was the sexual harassment scandal that rocked Madison Square Garden which involved Thomas and former Knicks executive Anucha Browne Sanders. Once Dolan fired Thomas in 2008, he hired Donnie Walsh as the Knicks general manager. Prior to joining the Knicks, Walsh had built the Indiana Pacers into a contender which culminated in the Pacers making their only NBA Finals appearance in 2000. During his time with the Knicks, Walsh had brought the Knicks out of salary cap purgatory, but Dolan would not stay out of his way. In 2011, the Knicks were at a stalemate with the Denver Nuggets in regards to acquiring small forward Carmelo Anthony. Walsh didn’t want Anthony at the Nuggets asking price while Dolan was ready to pull the trigger on the deal. Ultimately the Knicks acquired Anthony and in the process they gave the Nuggets five players and multiple draft picks. After the deal, the writing was on the wall and it would not be long before Walsh resigned.
Last season the Knicks won 54 games in the regular season for the first time since the 1994-1995 NBA season, but they have been unable to match their breakout season during this current NBA campaign. With a record currently of 33-43, the Knicks are guaranteed of their first losing season since the 2009-2010 NBA season. But following last night’s rout of the Brooklyn Nets, the Knicks woke up this morning and found themselves a couple of percentage points ahead the Atlanta Hawks for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference which was an afterthought on March 3 when they were 21-40.
After the rumors had been swirling around the Big Apple for several weeks, Dolan introduced Phil Jackson as the Knicks new president on March 18. Jackson is the ultimate winner as he won two NBA Championships as a player with the Knicks, six as the head coach of the Chicago Bulls, and five more as the head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers. Jackson’s 11 NBA Championships as a head coach are more than any other head coach in NBA history and there is a high level of respectability that he brings to an organization.
Jackson has never worked in a front office in the NBA, but his mere presence makes an organization better. Since Jackson was hired to work for the Knicks, the team’s record is 6-3 which includes victories over playoff bound teams in the Pacers and the Golden State Warriors. With seven games remaining in the regular season the Knicks have a puncher’s chance as far as making the playoffs this season. But regardless if the Knickerbockers are able to extend their season or not, you can expect Jackson to make changes to their roster. Jackson will set out to build a winner with the Knicks in his own image, but will the meddling Dolan stay out of his way?
When Jackson was introduced as the Knicks president, Dolan vowed to stay out of his way, but in New York City talk is cheap. Fans of the Knicks have heard this speech from Dolan before only to see him come back and stick his hand in the cookie jar. Since 2004 Dolan and the Knicks have employed two Hall of Fame head coaches in Lenny Wilkens and Larry Brown, one of the top executives in NBA history in Walsh and all they have to show for it are the most expensive tickets in the NBA and a disgruntled fan base. Once upon a time some disgruntled Knick fans organized a protest to show their frustration about the way that Thomas was running the team and there was a protest that was organized last month to display their disgust for Dolan.
In sports, the winning owners are the ones that entrust the people that they hire to get the job done instead of micromanaging what they are attempting to do. But we cannot expect anything less from Dolan as he was the same man that made Madison Square Garden employees use vacation days if they missed work during and immediately following Hurricane Sandy in 2012. Jackson is a modern day version of E.F. Hutton because when he talks, people listen. Jackson is not afraid to tell it like it is either, regardless of how good or bad things are going. Dolan tends to put a muzzle on Knick players and team personnel as far as what they can say to the media, but when Jackson does cross that line what will Cablevision’s golden boy do about it? In 2005 when Brown came to New York City he was fresh off of winning an NBA Championship with the Detroit Pistons in 2004. In his one season as the head coach of the Knicks, Brown led the the team to a 23-59 record while bickering in the media with some of his players and it didn’t take long before Dolan fired Brown.
In spite of the Knicks losing record currently, there is once again a buzz around Madison Square Garden due to Jackson’s arrival. If this were blackjack, Dolan would be sitting on 20 with no reason whatsoever to take another card from the dealer. But this is the infamous James Dolan that we’re talking about. Instead of him spending his time recording another album or raising cable prices for his loyal customers, he will spend that time annoying the “Zen Master” in Jackson which means that clock is ticking on how long it will take for Jackson to catch a flight from Laguardia en route to Montana to get away from Dolan and the Knicks.
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