by Sam Riches/ @sam_riches
With Donnie Walsh leaving his post as President of Basketball Operations and General Manager for the Knicks, the Isiah Thomas rumors have begun to manifest.
Stephen A. Smith sat down with Thomas on ESPN New York to discuss the departure of Walsh and whether or not he saw himself in the Knicks future plans.
” Do you want to be back with the New York Knicks organization?
‘I don’t want to be the President of the New York Knicks. That’s not what I’m angling for. In terms of being in the NBA or working in an NBA organization I’ve said this before at some point in time I would like to return to the NBA and I would like to continue in the NBA, but at this time my focus is at FIU [Florida International University] and working in college and working with the kids that I’m working with.’
Why do you not want to be the President of the New York Knicks or for any team?
‘I…not necessarily any team, but I would just say in this situation right now you know what with what went on with myself and my family and the toll that it took on just my family here in New York. It was just difficult for us and we had a very difficult time. I don’t know if I would want to go through that again.’
Let me just make this clear for the listeners out there. Are you trying to say that if your friend, the billionaire, Mr.Dolan, picked up the phone, called you and said ‘I want you back in the same position you had before you’d likely say no?’
‘I probably would because I think I could help him…I would try to help him in other ways. I just don’t know if my skin…I don’t know if my family and myself… I don’t if we could all go through that again. It was very difficult for all of us during that period of time and I wouldn’t want to go through that again.’
What about being the coach of the Knicks?
‘Absolutely not.’
While Knick fans can breathe a sigh of relief, rumors have also surfaced that Isiah Thomas could be in contact with Joe Dumars regarding the Detroit Pistons coaching vacancy.
