Ujiri has been linked to the Knicks, but he still is under contract with the RaptorsNBAE/GETTY IMAGES
The Knicks have parted ways with President Steve Mills, and team Owner James Dolan is "already considering a front-office model that is working" for the Warriors and Lakers: "hiring a top basketball executive out of the player agent ranks," according to sources cited by Shelburne & Wojnarowski of ESPN.com. Knicks GM Scott Perry is set to "oversee the basketball operations in the interim." Mills has been Knicks President since July '17. Since Mills rejoined the Knicks, the franchise is 178-365, the worst record in the NBA (ESPN.com, 2/4). SNY.tv's Ian Begley reported CAA's Austin Brown is "among those being given internal consideration for the Knicks' presidency opening after the ouster" of Mills. The Knicks also have been connected to Raptors President Masai Ujiri. But with Ujiri under contract, the Knicks "would have to compensate the Raptors in order to hire him away." Sources said that Roc Nation's Roger Montgomery is another agent among the group of representatives "under internal consideration" for the position (SNY.tv, 2/4). ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski said, "There are plenty of top-level executives, especially in smaller markets, who would love a crack at what it means to have the Knicks platform, to have the resources, to still have that great Madison Square Garden stage.” He added, “If they could just figure out a way with Jim Dolan to make that work. But if you look back at their last two searches, they have never gone after who you would consider the elite of the profession" (“The Jump,” ESPN, 2/4).
PICKIN' UP THE PIECES: In N.Y., Stefan Bondy writes for the fifth time in less than nine years, Dolan is "charging himself with finding a new person to run basketball operations." Mills was "never really qualified for the position," though he "promised stability and growth and stars and better communication with the media and fans." However, "none of that happened." Instead, the Knicks' image "descended even further under Mills." Bondy: "His three seasons as team president feels like a giant waste of time." For now, Perry will "run the show on an interim basis, but Dolan has reportedly already talked to at least one potential replacement." That "doesn't bode well for Perry removing the interim tag" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 2/5). On Long Island, Steve Popper notes Perry will "remain with the team for the remainder of the season," but there are "no guarantees beyond that for Perry and the rest of the front office." The execs under Perry "all have contracts that expire at season's end." Meanwhile, sources said that Perry has a "mutual option" that is "unlikely to be exercised" (NEWSDAY, 2/5).
LOOKING NORTH: On Long Island, Barbara Barker writes it "certainly appears" that Dolan is "making a full-court press to land Ujiri." Barker: "Keep your fingers crossed. Because if anyone in the game can fix the mess that is the Knicks, it is Ujiri." It took just five seasons for Ujiri to turn the Raptors into NBA champions. But with the Knicks, Ujiri "would be handed the ultimate challenge" (NEWSDAY, 2/5). In N.Y., Marc Berman notes for Ujiri, money is a "factor, but he also knows the spotlight" that N.Y. will "give his pride and joy," the Giants of Africa foundation, which he founded in '16 (N.Y. POST, 2/5). The Ringer's Bill Simmons on the dysfunction of the Knicks said, "This has been ‘Godfather III’ as a basketball team for 20 solid years now. There’s no end in sight, and now there’s another savior being dangled in Masai Ujiri" (“The Bill Simmons Podcast,” THERINGER.com, 2/5). Also in N.Y., Mike Vaccaro writes Ujiri is "signed with the Raptors through the end of next season, and the Raptors would surely demand draft compensation for him." However, because the Knicks have "all but written sonnets about how much they value their draft assets," that "seems a genuine stumbling block" (N.Y. POST, 2/5). In Toronto, Bruce Arthur writes the "obstacles now are the same obstacles" the Knicks encountered in '17, the last time this was an issue: Ujiri is under contract through '21, and the Raptors "would want elephantine draft-pick compensation." Arthur: "The Raptors are the best-run organization in basketball, and the problem with that is that other teams want to hire the people who run it" (TORONTO STAR, 2/5). THE RINGER's Dan Devine wrote as "unlikely as it seems that Ujiri would leave the kingdom he's built in the North to come work for Dolan in Manhattan, it's hard to argue too hard against trying to shop at the top of the market to find the best person for the job" (THERINGER.com, 2/4).
CULTURE SHOCK: YAHOO SPORTS' Vincent Goodwill wrote the Knicks are an "attractive job at this point for anyone who wants to take over, but can Dolan be trusted to make the right decisions when his long history suggests otherwise?" (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 2/4). ESPN Radio's Mike Golic said, "If you’re a successful GM, what in God’s green earth ... would make you want to go to work for the Knicks, an awful organization that is overseen by an owner who people make comparisons to Jerry Jones.” Golic: “I get there is always a draw to the big city, but at some point you do have to say the pros and cons. I’m sorry, the cons are a hell of a lot longer list than the pros” (“Golic & Wingo,” ESPN Radio, 2/5). In DC, Ben Golliver writes Dolan's "deep pockets" and the N.Y. market are the "best selling points to pitch to aspiring successors to Mills." But there is "far more to NBA success than money and market size, and Dolan seems intent on being the last person to figure that out" (WASHINGTON POST, 2/5). ESPN's Rachel Nichols said, "This is basically what Dolan is saying: 'Hey, please come to our organization that has a history of wild instability, incompetence, misogyny and a North Korea-like monitoring of employees' words and communications and do it at a time of particular chaos, chaos I've created by firing my team president two days before the trade deadline.'" Nichols added, "This is colossally mystifying behavior" ("The Jump," ESPN, 2/4).
