Donnie Walsh said all the right things, short of, perhaps, giving a stronger indication of Isiah Thomas' future with the team. He seemed so much more at ease in dealing with the media crush -- and let me tell you, the sit-down after the press conference was as serious and rapid-fire as it gets -- than Isiah ever has in his tenure. Some guys are just made for this and Walsh is undoubtedly someone not overwhelmed by the intensity of the job.
Isiah often talked about what he thought it was to be a New Yorker. Donnie knows. He grew up on 235th Street in the Bronx, but was born on 21st and 10th Ave in Lower Manhattan. He lived in Astoria and Brooklyn and moved upstate a few years during his youth before he came back to the metropolitan area when the family moved to Riverdale. He became a star at Fordham Prep and went on to North Carolina. But The City Game was always in him. Still is, even after all those years on the wrong side of the Hicks vs. Knicks wars in the 1990s.
"I felt a commonality as a New York basketball player," Walsh said. "We take a lot of pride in coming from New York, as players and as basketball people. And so that kind of got to me, that I had this opportunity."
It means something to him, far more than the $5 million a year he's gonna pocket for doing the job. At 67 years old, you don't move out of a place you've lived for a quarter century just to make a buck. You do it because of the message from a raspy-voiced old coach, and old friend, who told you why this was the right thing to do.
"Donnie!" the voice said. "It's Louie!"
Walsh was asked if it really was Coach Carnasecca.
"Oh how could you . . . ?" Walsh replied. He then imitated Carnasecca's trademark hoarse: Donnie! "I mean," Walsh then said, "it was Louie!"
"Frank and Buck are lookin' atcha now!" the message continued. "They're smilin'!"
"Then he said, 'God love ya,' or something like that," Walsh said.
Frank and Buck are Frank Maguire and Buck Freeman, both New York legends who coached Walsh during his playing career.
Walsh admitted the message "affected me."
The thrill of working at the Garden had an impact, too. Walsh recalled how the Garden rocked in the '90s, during those memorable battles with his Pacers.
“That’s it, that is it, that’s what I want to get to," he said. "To get that back, that’s what I’d like to do . . . Oh it was awesome. It was, ‘Deee-Fense! Dee-Fense!’”
It was magic. And he gets it.
Comments (9)
Alan, Walsh said a number of things today that gives all Knick fans cause for hope:
--he will rebuild the team, lower payroll, and get under the cap in two to three years. He didn't say the assine, "you can't rebuild in NY."
--he said the right thing to do is sit down with Thomas before making an announcement. Now, everyone knows, Isiah will be fired, but it will be done in a classy, caring and sensitive way. A far cry from how the Garden operated under Thomas.
--he said that dealing with the media is important, that its media RELATIONS, and that the team belongs to the fans. Perfect.
I have not been this optimistic about the Knicks since Dave Checketts hired Pat Riley. I can't wait for the announcement that Isiah is "stepping down" as coach to be the "Pro Scouting Director," or some other nonsense.
So far so good. I'm giving this guy at least a year and see what he does. It would be cool if he can start a true rebuilding program and it would be even cooler if the fans can actually buy into a rebuilding program. I know we'll all say we're fine with a rebuilding program but it'll be interesting to see if that turns out to actually be true. If the record is the same this time next year, but the knicks have gotten rid of some of the dead wood, will fans be patient or will they be screaming for Walsh's head?
really hope we get D Rose.
Alan, Way to admit you were asking the Isiah question in a different way! I put up my deposit for a miniplan next season. Keep up the good work in the off-season. Hopefully you can give us a little more with your new accese to the players (not a knock on you, you do a great job)
walsh can't keep isiah on as coach if he wants people to take him serious...
if he does he will start his campaign off on a very bad note and i will add him to the dolan puppet show.
would you stake your credibilty on isiah?
A REAL B-BALL PRESIDENT OF OPERATIONS WOULD NOT...
ALAN,
A lot of us are Starting a new blog! Many like Lives in jersey, Statesman, African , and many others wil be leaving Knickssdefense, because he has let the money he makes from ads run him! We will add your blog to our site and hope we are welcome! Knicksdefense has lost his mind and is only interested in his "SPONSERS".........that is as low as snake SHYTE!
We will welcome you as a brother blog! Believe me MONEY IS NO PROBLEM....it's time....and we will agree to share the leads!
Just letting you now because his blog is as dead as "WACKY" !!!!!
If Isiah Thomas stays, Walsh doesn't have my respect.
alan, i'm a little birdie told me calipari is coming to tha knicks. take it how u want it.
Hey Alan, I've been reading your blog since last February. I always come here first for Knicks news.
But honestly, last winter was my first time following the Knicks since the Ewing era. I remember being a little kid growing up in Dekalb, Brooklyn watching the 1995 eastern conference semis on a crappy little TV, and knowing in my child mind that something really bad must have happened while the room fell silent as Reggie scored 8 points in 8.9. And I remember when karma came in 1999 during the eastern conference finals, and how my family went absolutely crazy when LJ got fouled for the 4 point play. I remember when the NBA had real rivalries. And I think it's so fitting that those Pacers duels, that were so entertaining to watch, were made possible by the man who will run the Knicks next season. All I want is drama back at The Garden, not baby momma drama, not Anucha Sanders drama, I want PLAYOFF drama.
Thanks for not defecting back to the Islanders. And thanks for not being afraid to write about non-Knicks related items. I really appreciate the anecdotes about basketball nostalgia and family, and occasionally kitchen renovation. Best wishes to you and yours and the new addition on the way.
Peace,
You actually came slithering back to Alan's blog ??? Afraid to be a man (and I say that loosely) without a country ? Maybe if you don't call out the blog host repeatedly, act like a racist, bash people childishly and take everything personally you could actually stick somewhere.
Alpha dog my ass. lol