[ThePundit]

See the column below. Barbara Barker pretty much sums up the ineptness of Knicks managment in today's Newsday

Face facts, Jim: Isiah's hopeless
Barbara Barker

March 2, 2006

Jim Dolan has always been pretty good at ignoring pesky little things like facts in order to create his own reality.

For instance, at the end of the 2002-2003 season, the Knicks owner declared that "the quickest way for the Knicks to reach championship caliber" was under coach Don Chaney. He then handed Chaney his third extension, despite the fact the Knicks had missed the playoffs two years in a row.

Three years, three coaches and no postseason wins later, Dolan sat down with Knicks beat writers in Memphis yesterday and said it will be "three or four years" before the Knicks franchise is a solid playoff team moving toward being a championship contender.

Although this is not great news for Knicks fans, it might be the most reality-based proclamation to come out of Dolan's mouth since he took over as chairman of Madison Square Garden seven years ago. Now, if he could only extend his new penchant to his evaluation of Isiah Thomas, the Knicks might be able to adhere to his new timetable.

Instead, Dolan yesterday defended the job his team president is doing, predicting that the same people who are now booing Thomas "will be lauding his job later on."

What is Dolan's reasoning behind his vote of confidence? Thomas, said Dolan, has a plan and he is executing it.

Of course, having a plan and executing it doesn't always guarantee success, especially if it's a bad plan. General Custer had a plan. So did FEMA. Thomas may have a plan, but right now it's hard to say exactly what it is, unless it involves setting an NBA record for number of guys who play guard in one organization.

In a little more than two seasons, Thomas has made trade after trade and the Knicks now have a $125-million payroll, the largest in the league and roughly double that of the defending champion Spurs.

They are well on their way to having the worst record in team history, and if they keep losing as they have over the past month, they could fall behind the second-year Bobcats and end up with the worst record in the league.

Compounding the situation is the fact that there's no potential Patrick Ewing waiting in the wings for the Knicks to build around. Thomas traded the Knicks' first-round pick to the Bulls to acquire Eddy Curry last summer. Though it's not a great draft, it's still going to be plenty painful for Knicks fans if the Bulls end up with the No. 1 pick.

The Knicks aren't only a mess on the court, they are a circus off of it, with Thomas having been named in a sexual-harassment lawsuit by a former employee.

Almost every team bottoms out. The question is what do they do about it. Toronto, another bad team, took a positive step forward two days ago by hiring Bryan Colangelo away from Phoenix. The Knicks might want to consider doing something similar this summer when Kiki Vandeweghe becomes available.

Vandeweghe, who built Denver into a playoff team by trading away bloated contracts, is familiar with coach Larry Brown, having played for him at UCLA. Vandeweghe may have a better understanding of Brown's personality quirks, a better idea of how to work with him.

Thomas did bring Brown in. Although it is by far his best move, it may end up being the one he regrets most. Brown and Thomas both have strong personalities, with the difference being that Brown is the one person in the Knicks organization who has been successful at the job he currently holds. Brown is the one thing the team can build around, and perhaps the smartest thing the Knicks can do is to find him a general manager who will give him the kind of team he wants.

But it doesn't appear to be in the cards, at least for now.

"I can't say it to you any plainer than what I've already said it: I'm not making a change," Dolan said. "I believe in the plan; I believe in the strategy; I believe in the guys who are executing it. Maybe some people think I'm brain-dead because of that and the record, but you know what? Time will tell."

Dolan's right. He couldn't have said it any plainer.
Copyright 2006 Newsday Inc.