The Knickstape Podcast Episode 2 - The Aftermath (KP Injured / Trade Deadline Insanity)

Listen to "Knickstape Episode 2 - The Aftermath (KP Out / Trade Deadline)" on Spreaker.

- KP out, where do the Knicks go from here?

- Trade Deadline Insanity - Mudiay to Knicks, Cavs trade everyone not named Lebron or JR

- Luke recalls witnessing Kemba Walker ask for a bottle of Grey Goose at the divey-est bar in America

- Where in the world is Eddy Curry?

Words from the Horse's Mouth: Jimmy Dolan, Owner of the Knicks

James Dolan Breaking it Down with His Band, J.D. and the Straight Shot, via NY Daily News

No one would think they’d see the day James Dolan would speak to the media. The Knicks owner who has garnered a reputation for hiding from reporters seems to be changing his tune. Dolan recently sat down with the New York Post’s Mike Vaccaro to talk the state of the Knicks, Head Coach Mike Woodson, the Isiah experiment and much more. The interview was entertaining to say the least.

The Knicks and Rangers owner feels this year’s squad is still championship worthy and even went as far as saying he feels they are better suited for a title run than last year's team. Yeah I’m still scratching my head. 

Last year’s team seemed to have so much more chemistry, depth and most importantly leadership. I know the owner is supposed to be optimistic about his team, but there’s and fine line between optimism and delusion. The Knicks constructed as they are right now cannot challenge Miami, Indiana or Chicago. They need more front-court depth and a legit sidekick for Melo to even get mentioned in the discussion.

He also touched on his connection with his fan base. According to Jimmy, he feels he has a deep connection with the fans and that he “watches out” for all of them. So, Mr. Dolan, is trading Shumpert what the fans want? PROB NOT. He also said he tries to put the best product on the court for the fans. Explain those Knick teams that trotted out Jerome James, Stephon Marbury and Eddy Curry? Explain firing a general manager [Glen Grunwald] who constructed last year’s team and this year’s 'championship worthy' squad.

J.D. did manage to answer why Grunwald was relieved of his duties right before training camp. The hiring of Steve Mills was because Grunwald used “classical” methods and times have changed. He felt a change was needed to carry this team's management into the future and made the move right before training camp because that is ‘dead time’ for GMs. Dead time? I don’t get it.

The only good news coming from the sit down was Dolan semi-promising that Isiah Thomas would never be back working for the Knicks in an official manner:

He lost a lot of games! OK. Do I think he deserves another shot? Yeah. It just can’t be here. And I think he’s talented. I think he’s particularly talented at finding basketball talent. But I think he’s probably dismayed at this point. But I don’t see him coming back to New York. I couldn’t do that to him, and I couldn’t do that to the organization. - Dolan, NY Post

The fact that he still thinks Isiah deserves another shot is completely baffling. Isiah was an absolute embarrassment in New York and a forever stain on this franchise’s history. If there’s one thing we learned from the interview is that Jimmy D. is a stubborn man, who does not live in the same reality as most. He did however promise a return of ‘The Knicks City Dancers’ and said they will be doing more Broadway themed routines. What a relief.

James Dolan Back with a Vengeance

Pouty James Dolan & Johnny McEnroe via SportsonEarth.com

When James Dolan told General Manager Steve Mills, Coach Mike Woodson and his staff that he expects this year to end with a parade in the Canyon of Heroes I can imagine their faces resembled a deer staring into the headlights of an oncoming vehicle. Whether Dolan was fed up with all the praise that Mikhail Prokhorov and the rival Nets have been getting over the offseason or he is genuinely tired of mediocrity like the rest of the fan base is still up for debate. What is not up for debate is that the Knicks roster as it stands today does not  look like a championship caliber team.  This is no fault of Woodson who is the best head coach the Knicks have had since Jeff Van Gundy, but the fault of owner James Dolan himself. Going all the way back to the hiring of Isaiah Thomas and the preceding disaster that knocked the franchise back a decade This is the same owner who promoted Dream Week to fans, a week where the best players in the league like Kobe Bryant, LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony would come to the Garden and wipe the floor with the home team. The same owner who gave the fans the pipe dream that Lebron James will be in a Knick in 2010 only to miss out and  give Amar’e Stoudemire a $100 million guaranteed contract as a consolation prize all the while the whole world knew his knees could shut down at any moment.

Dolan’s heart is in the right place, but it is clear that his decision making is not.. The firing of Glen Grunwald who did a tremendous job building last year’s team in favor of Steve Mills was a disturbing move. Now Dolan expects this Knicks roster to win a championship. I can hear LeBron James and Dwyane Wade laughing from South Beach. Now while every owner should expect that from his team why not come out last year and say that? As it stands now, last year’s roster was considerably better than this year’s squad. On top of that the Knicks did virtually nothing in the off season besides drafting Tim Hardaway Jr. and adding Andrea Bargnani. The only person Dolan should be furious at is himself for not letting his basketball guys handle basketball operations. My advice for Dolan is to keep quiet, give these players time to get a feel for each other and show Anthony that this franchise is dedicated to winning.