NBA's commish calling the shots for the Knicks?
There?s little love between Stern and the Spurs
Thursday, April 03, 2008
With news that the Knicks have hired Pacers' man, Donnie Walsh to head things up in New York comes this interesting take from Yahoo! Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski.
"Dolan hired the preferred choice of David Stern, who has been pushing Dolan hard for months now," writes Wojnarowski. "Stern pushed him into dropping an appeal and settling Anucha Browne Sanders? sexual harassment suit for $11.5 million. Stern pushed Walsh on Dolan, too. This hire delivers a dose of credibility to the Knicks? bottomed-out operation, goodwill to a city of basketball writers who?ve always been partial to Walsh?s goodwill and Bronx charm.
"Nevertheless, there are younger, more cutting-edge minds in the sport. There are now executives, too. To think that Dolan never called R.C. Buford, the Spurs GM, speaks to the flawed business sense of the franchise. How did they hire the last president and GM? They offered the job to Magic Johnson. He turned it down. Magic said, ?Try Isiah.? They did.
"Buford has the title of general manager, but Gregg Popovich has ultimate control of the sport?s best-run franchise. Buford loves his life in San Antonio, his relationship with Popovich, but he would?ve listened to the Knicks. Unlike Walsh, who no longer travels to scout colleges and Europe, Buford is one of those younger executives who travels to the ends of the earth to complement Tim Duncan with the perfect cast of characters. Any top executive with final say must work this way now.
"No one has done a poorer job of mining the globe for players than the Knicks. After spending time studying the Cleveland Indians, Buford constructed a model Developmental League relationship with San Antonio?s Austin affiliate. These are different days in the NBA, different vistas and the Knicks, with unlimited resources, would?ve been wise to explore them all.
"There?s little love between Stern and the Spurs, and it was no surprise that Buford wasn?t on his short list for Dolan."
To that, we add our own take:
Sure, the Spurs have had to adjust after big rule changes from the NBA following a couple of their championships.
Sure, the Spurs were handed the toughest regular season ending schedule ever as they try to repeat.
What do you mean there is no love between Stern and the Spurs?
Surely, the fans in Phoenix would not agree with any of this.
"I just hope that grin of his is as big as it was when Boston and the Lakers made those big trades this year when he finds himself handing another set of championship rings in San Antonio next fall," writes one fan.
To that, we say... Odds are slim.