Has enough time passed for Isiah Thomas to return to New York basketball? In the mind of Madison Square Garden owner James Dolan, the answer appears to be "Yes, and by god did I miss Isiah."
Sources: Isiah Thomas has been named President of the New York Liberty of the WNBA. Thomas will also have part ownership of the team.
— Chris Broussard (@Chris_Broussard) May 5, 2015What in the hell? Of course, Dolan's bizarre affinity for Thomas has always been a confusing, contentious point for Knicks fans. From 2003 to 2008, the Knicks spent heavily like wanna-be winners, lost like the losers they actually were, and were decidedly the most miserable NBA team in the league—all under Thomas' watch as President of Basketball Operations, and later, as head coach!
Job performance aside, it's mind-boggling that Dolan's bosses—MSG's 273 shareholders—would allow Thomas to walk back into an executive role with one of the company's professional sports franchises after he cost them $11.6 million in a highly-embarrassing sexual harassment lawsuit settlement.
@Chris_Broussard @russbengtson pic.twitter.com/k8xQMOBiBV
— Jason Stein (@jasonwstein) May 5, 2015Not only that, but less than two years ago, in a rare interview with the New York Post, Dolan admitted that it'd be difficult for Thomas to return to work in New York.
"For Isiah, I don’t know that he’ll ever be able to work in New York," said Dolan. "I just don’t know that he’ll ever get a fair shake, going forward in New York?"
Dolan did also indicate, however, that if he and Thomas were buddy-buddy enough again one day, he'd probably get another shot with MSG. Read between the lines here:
"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. He would probably do it as my friend but I couldn’t do it to him or his family. And you know what the press would do here. We’re interested in getting better and that situation would be such a distraction that it would actually hinder our ability to get better."
Apparently eight years is long enough for rich guys to forget about a multi-million dollar sexual harassment scandal. And, apparently, nobody cares about the WNBA's New York Liberty enough for the press to bother President Thomas all that much. This is a clear win-win for Jim and Isiah.
1.
Because when you're super wealthy and your "friend" needs another job and a shot of equity, having the opportunity to look the other way is why you became super wealthy in the first place.
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