Obviously, forgetting about trades that never happened since as fans we don’t know what was on the table at what time, you can only draft from the talent available on the board when your name is called. When you look at the players Isiah could have realistically been expected to pick and passed on as Knicks GM, he had a couple of major misses: Frye over Bynum and Balkman/Collins over Rondo. Put Rondo and Bynum alone on the Knicks and they’re currently one of the best young teams in the NBA.

He also had some hits in Lee, Ariza, and arguably Nate Robinson. His draft record overall was solid, but passing on All-Star talent for mediocrity is what dooms franchises for years. That has to go right up there with all the ridiculous trades, signings, and management decisions Isiah made as dooming his tenure. Had he simply drafted Bynum and Rondo I bet we might be willing to forgive most of Isiah’s other mistakes.

Feels more and more like it’s gonna happen, just a question of when. (Melo, not Isiah!)

I would also like to comment on Isiah’s drafting. It’s true that not every pick Isiah made turned out to be a star. But I think you are overestimating the success of the typical GM drafter. A lot of draft picks end up contributing nothing much to the NBA. Some draft picks don’t even make the teams they are drafted for. I am sure you can think of many past Knick draft picks by previous GMs that were say “quite” disappointing. But basically all of Isiah’s draft picks ended up being valued players in some role or other on some team in the NBA. Even Balkman is valued by the Nuggets and would probably get more playing time if they didn’t also have Anderson. As fans, we always want more from the draft, but this sort of performance is actually much better than average.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/432454-the-case-for-isiah

JK47 you can say what you will, but the man according to ESPN is the #2 drafter in the last 20 years. It was in the mid-level exceptions, actually trading away draft picks and unbalanced roster creation that he was terrible. The Steve Francis trade was pushed by Larry Brown. Everyone at the time scratched their head, but Brown wanted that move.

And yes the starting line-up you mentioned never gelled mostly because the talent all needed the ball. Isiah the coach should have started Curry, Lee, Jeffries/Balkman, Crawford and Marbury. That was actually a line-up that was playing .500 basketball the previous season. (Would have been interesting w/ Zach off the bench). Q-Rich by this time was a shadow of his former self because of injuries. But if you read the article I previously posted it shows that after game 5 the whole team chemistry thing fell apart. Due mostly to poor coaching/management by Thomas.

Anyway… Isiah can be useful, but I certainly don’t think he can be a GM or President of a basketball team. Too much of a mess.

Anyone know the history of owners being forced to sell their teams in professional sports?

If it were up to me, the Knicks would have a restraining order on the man.

I’m prob. putting to fine a point on the story. The main thing I’m trying to say is that, I just think Isiah will have a role more similar to Allan Houston’s this time around and I’m getting annoyed at the ESPN “here we go again”; “he’s baaack” slant suggesting that Isiah will be able to execute trades similar to the ones he did when he was GM.

Houston is Dolan’s golfing buddy, hence that ridiculous $100 million contract, and Walsh has had free reign anyway.

Zeke’s power hungry, he doesn’t deserve this role but I’m not just going to assume this move opens the floodgates to another Marbury/Curry era.

And for the record, I don’t think it’s a smart idea to add Zeke back to the mix.

BUT if Dolan wants to let Isiah rebuild his rep. by letting him schmooze Chris Paul on a recruiting trip or by calling attention to a prospect like Wilson Chandler and he keeps Walsh and/or D’Antoni in place to keep him in check, then we can prob. take our fingers of the panic button. It seems like a high risk low reward move for us as Knicks fans; but we also shouldn’t unquestioningly swallow the dramatic spin ESPN is putting on this story either.

>> But honestly, if he’s ONLY making recruiting trips to FA’s like CP3
>> and/or gets to weigh in but can be overruled on draft choices,
>> AND you can somehow avoid a power struggle while involving
>> him, I think he could even (gulp) be helpful. DS

DS, I’m not certain your note is adequately appreciative of what it’s like to work in a large organization. Especially one, like the Knicks, with an idiot at the very top.

Of course Isaiah may very well be a good judge of basketball talent. But even hiring him *just* to scout talent can have an effect on the morale of the overall group. If it rocks the apple cart and upsets Walsh, D’Antoni, and others, it might be foolish indeed.

There are times when the boss of a large organization might even want people to be nervous. But this isn’t one of them. Rebuilding a club with a salary cap takes time and patience. But most of all, it takes a steady hand.

I think most on this list feel that Marbury, Crawford, and Zach Randolph were all capable players, but capable players that were making too much money, and who weren’t going to get us to another level.

But trading them took patience and confidence. If you think you might lose your job due to someone whispering in your boss’ ear, you are less likely to do such things.

Look at Pat Riley. To any Knick fan he’s an evil genius. He seems to have had a diabolical plan all along, and hoped (but didn’t know for certain) it would work out. Do you think he could have traded Beasley away, or given away first round picks, without the certainty of his plan panning out, if Mickey Arison was hosting Isaiah on his boat every time Riley called him to report in? I’m guessing he would have been unsure.

Plain and simple, Isaiah needs a restraining order. And James Dolan needs a terrible boating accident.

Rant out.

Isiah’s skills as a talent evaluator are putrid. This is a guy who believed that Stephon Marbury and Steve Francis could
coexist in the backcourt, that Eddy Curry and his 6.5 RPG was a legitimate NBA center and that the perfect frontcourt mate to Curry would be Zach Randolph. Let’s never forget that Isiah gave us a starting five of Stephon Marbury, Jamal Crawford, Quentin Richardson, Zach Randolph and Eddy Curry– the most ill-fitted and impossible to root for team that I have ever seen.