David Stern Happy the Knicks are No Longer Awful


While pushing more of the NBA owners’ lockout propaganda, Stern says that after former GM Donnie Walsh helped bring the Knicks back to respectability — or, as he terms it, the team “found religion” — New York fans should be pleased with the organization’s direction. From the NY Post (via WFAN): “I think the Knicks have found religion,’ Stern said. ‘And watching what they’ve done with Amar’e [Stoudemire], with Carmelo [Anthony], with the team that is going to be surrounding them, they’re going to be fine. I think they lost their way for a while but they’re doing very well now and I’m looking forward to seeing the new building.’ One way the Knicks lost their way was through onerous contracts. Stern, while discussing guaranteed contracts, reviewed the owners’ idea to ensure Eddy Curry- and Jerome James-like deals don’t sink another franchise. ‘What we’ve tried to do, which may ring a bell with fans in New York, we’ve said if you have a player who’s not performing, rather than get stuck with him and thereby not allow yourself to improve you can waive him and spread the payments over twice the length of his remaining contract,’ Stern said. ‘If you get stuck with one or two bad contracts, you don’t have the ability to improve your team.'”