However his latest move may be his strangest of all.

Dec. 17, 2012; New York, NY, USA; Tennis player John McEnroe (left) and MSG chief executive officer James Dolan attend the game between the New York Knicks and the Houston Rockets at Madison Square Garden. Houston won 109-96. Mandatory Credit: Debby Wong-USA TODAY Sports

Straight out of his 007 playbook, Dolan reportedly sent “spies” to follow Knicks’ superstar Carmelo Anthony and record every syllable he uttered during a recent loss to the Chicago Bulls.

Dave D’Alessandro of The Star-Ledger first reported:

For reasons only he can explain — but probably wouldn’t, at least not without an act of Congress — Jim Dolan made a few MSG Network employees perform a surreptitious duty during the Knicks’ game against Chicago on Friday night.

Two audio technicians were stationed at two corners of the court — one a few feet just behind the Knicks bench, the other diagonally opposite — and they were holding those umbrella-shaped contraptions known as parabola microphones, which fed the audio into a DAT recorder on the truck on the loading dock.

These guys had one directive from Dolan: Record every syllable Carmelo Anthony utters and absorbs while he’s on the court and on the bench, the Madison Square Garden CEO ordered them, and send the tape directly to me.

That pretty much leaves me speechless.

It’s something that you wouldn’t even see out of a bad spy movie, but it is like Watergate on a basketball court.

I could try and make some sense (and probably wouldn’t be able to) had Dolan had his people eavesdrop on an opposing player, but to spy on his own player?

Unfortunately, knowing Dolan, we will never find out why this happened or the true reason behind it.

The only thing I can think of that makes even the slightest bit of sense would be that Dolan wanted proof that ‘Melo is a verbal target around the NBA, but that is just me thinking out loud and doesn’t explain how truly absurd this is.

One thing is clear though and it is that Dolan had a good reason for spying on his meal ticket- a reason that we will likely never find out.

The only real question to be asked is what exactly was Dolan hoping to accomplish with this?

All it does is add some unnecessary drama to a team that doesn’t need any of that nonsense right now.

He has often been a guy who marches to the beat of his own drum and has done some really dumb things in the past, but this may take the cake.

This is just another chapter in the book of the sad tenure of Dolan as the owner of the Knicks.

Follow Matt Shetler on Twitter for news, reaction and analysis from around the NBA.

Follow Buckets Over Broadway on Twitter and on Facebook

January 15, 2011; Denver, CO USA; Florida International Panthers head coach Isiah Thomas during a game against Denver Pioneers at Magness Arena. Mandatory Credit: Andrew B. Fielding-US PRESSWIRE

The best thing that happened to the Knicks franchise was the day Thomas was relieved of his duties of general manager and coach of this team. The damage Thomas did in his brief tenure in the Big Apple is still trying to be fixed in the present day.

However there could be bad news on the horizon for Knicks’ fans and that, according to a report from ESPN’s Ian Begley, Thomas and Knicks’ owner James Dolan met for lunch on Friday.

That by itself is not earth shattering news as Dolan and Thomas remain close friends and quite frankly deserve each other, but the timing is curious. MSG president Scott O’Neil announced he was stepping down from his post on Wednesday.

It’s highly unlikely that Thomas would be in the running for the president position, which is a job that includes marketing and sponsorship responsibilities. but Dolan has always wanted to bring Thomas back in some capacity; including in 2010 when he tried to hire Thomas as a consultant. Thankfully that was nixed by the NBA because of Thomas’ position as head coach of Florida International.

However there has always been speculation that Dolan wanted to bring Thomas back in some official capacity and since Thomas was fired by FIU in April, unfortunately the timing works out well for both parties.

Knicks’ general manager Glen Grunwald and head coach Mike Woodson are also close to Thomas as all three were teammates at Indiana University.

The worst part is that Thomas remains interested in the Knicks, telling Ian O’Connor in November 2010 that he thinks about running the Knicks again, “every day of the week.”

Personally, I can’t believe bringing Thomas back would ever be considered, although I can’t believe most of what Dolan does. If letting Jeremy Lin walk didn’t irritate most Knicks fans, bring back Thomas would alienate the rest of the fan base.

Things like that don’t go through Dolan’s mind though, so unfortunately it wouldn’t surprise me in the least if Dolan announces Thomas’ return in the near future. All Knicks fans can do now is hope and pray that it doesn’t happen.

Follow Matt Shetler on Twitter for news, reaction and analysis from around the NBA.

Follow Buckets Over Broadway on Twitter and on Facebook

The latest attempt to light a flame under this rivalry was delivered by Nets’ owner Mikhail Prokhorov who made a point to refer to Knicks’ owner James Dolan as “that little man,” to a New York Magazine writer.

Sure Prokhorov stands 6’8″ but his height has nothing to do with looking down at Dolan.

Prokhorov didn’t move the Nets to Brooklyn to play second fiddle to Dolan’s Knicks and he will look to take advantage of any opportunity to make that known to anyone who will listen.

This dates back to his initial press conference in 2010 when Prokhorov said: ”We will turn Knicks fans into Nets fans.”

Prokhorov hasn’t been shy at spending money as he’s added about $300 million of payroll this season and while he’s transformed the Nets into potential contenders, personally I view all of his comments as side-show antics.

Despite adding talent and spending money, the Nets must establish themselves before they are any threat to the Knicks.

That’s something Tyson Chandler agrees with as well, telling ESPN:

“I heard a little bit, but I think it’s foolish,” Chandler told reporters in July. “The Nets are just coming together, and I think it’s pointless for them to talk to us about anything. First they need to establish themselves. It’s a lot of talk, almost the same thing as us playing against the Dream Team — it can’t happen right now. I will let it speak for itself the first time we play them.”

Dolan is an easy target for criticism, but not from Prokhorov, whose team has done very little since he arrived on the scene in 2010.

Prokhorov can take all the shots at Dolan and the Knicks he wants, but the back pages still belong to the Knicks and the Nets won’t own them anytime soon. When and if they do, maybe then I will listen to what Prokhorov has to say.

Until then, he just sounds like “the little man,” in all of this.

If anything though, this rivalry is set to explode and the one way the Knicks can keep Prokhorov quiet is by simply beating them more often than not.

They will get the first chance to do exactly that when they open the Barclay’s Center on November 1.

Follow Matt Shetler on Twitter for news, reaction and analysis from around the NBA.

Follow Buckets Over Broadway on Twitter and on Facebook

Dolan has had limited success as the owner of both the Rangers and the Knicks. The Knicks have not won a playoff series since 2001, and have not won a playoff game since 2003 (until this season). Dolan oversaw the coming and going of several high profile name coaches including Larry Brown, Jeff Van Gundy, and Lenny Wilkens. There was one coach in particular that was bad news for the Knicks: Dolan’s good pal, Isiah Thomas.

Antonelli/News

Thomas had been a Hall of Fame Point Guard in his days with Detroit. After retiring from playing, Thomas had some success as the coach of the Indiana Pacers, but was ultimately fired due to lack of experience as a coach. In 2003, Thomas was hired as the President of Basketball Operations of the Knicks.

As the head of the front office, Isiah made poor decisions including trading away draft picks, signing players to ridiculous contracts (Jerome James anyone?), and having a team with the highest payroll and second lowest win total. It is also to be noted that Thomas brought controversy to the team when he was charged with a sexual misconduct lawsuit. Dolan of course extended Thomas’ contract even while the Knicks were playing mediocre.

Dolan made what may be the best decision of his career when he hired Donnie Walsh to replace Thomas as President of Basketball Operations. Walsh came in and cleared out the bad contracts Thomas had created, and fired Thomas replacing him with Mike D’Antoni. It is rumored that Dolan’s friendship with Thomas remained, and that Thomas was secretly running the show behind closed doors.

Walsh lost out on LeBron James, but still ended up with a winning team including young talent like Raymond Felton, Wilson Chandler, Amar’e Stoudemire, Danilo Galinari, and Timofey Mozgov. At this time, the Carmelo Anthony rumors began, and that his preferred destination was New York. Walsh did not want to give up too much for ‘Melo knowing that he could sign him in the offseason, but Dolan demanded that the trade be executed, and he went above Walsh’s head in order to give away more talent.

Walsh did not like that he did not have autonomy over the team, and Dolan could not come to terms with a new contract, so Walsh was replaced with Glen Grunwald. Grunwald is credited with seeing Jeremy Lin’s potential after he was released from Houston. Lin blew up on to the scene with Linsanity in February. His contract would be up at the end of the season, and everyone and their brother assumed that Lin’s contract would be matched no matter what.

That was not the case. After Houston offered Lin a large back-ended offer for three years of service, Dolan was allowed three days to decide if he should match it. After a free agency that including paying big money for Camby, Kidd, and Felton, it seemed like the Knicks did not worry about luxury taxes and cap room. It seemed wrong, because Dolan decided not to match Lin’s deal–letting one of the most famous athletes on the planet walk away from one of the most famous teams.

Avoiding that contract may have been the smart thing to do, and I believe it may end of being a wise move by Dolan, but that doesn’t matter to Lin’s fanbase. Dolan can’t win, and people are mad at him for taking away their beloved star.

While Dolan may be one of the more wealthy owners willing to dig deep into his pockets in order to have his team win, he also may be one of the most involved in a business that he knows nothing about. Dolan deserves all of the hate he receives from the fans, but he can reverse his fortune by keeping himself out of the way. The Knicks need an owner who will shut up and win. I doubt that will happen.

Mar 21, 2012; Philadelphia, PA, USA; New York Knicks guard Jeremy Lin (17) during the fourth quarter against the Philadelphia 76ers at the Wells Fargo Center. The Knicks defeated the Sixers 82-79. Mandatory Credit: Howard Smith-US PRESSWIRE

With Saturday night’s acquisition of point guard Raymond Felton and the earlier signing of unrestricted free agent point guard Jason Kidd, it seems less and less likely by the hour that the New York Knicks bring back 2012 sensation Jeremy Lin.

The Knicks have until 11:59 p.m. EDT on Tuesday to make a decision on matching Lin’s According to Marc Berman of the New York Post, the Knicks will not match the three-year, $25-plus million offer sheet he signed with the Houston Rockets.

See ya Jeremy: As I reported last night, #Knicks won’t match Houston’s offer to Lin after trading for Felton nyp.st/LS4rJI

— Marc Berman (@NYPost_Berman) July 15, 2012

In addition, Berman explained the upcoming decision, writing:

The Knicks had been set to match Lin’s original offer sheet of four years, $28.9 million that had a $19 million guarantee before the Rockets threw a financial curveball that called for a $15 million third year that would have doomed owner James Dolan’s luxury-tax predicament.

Berman also explained how the change to the offer sheet hurt the Knicks and what the implications would have been by matching the offer.

If Lin made $14.9 million in 2014-15, the Knicks’ payroll could include eight players costing $87 million — or as much as $17 million over the luxury-tax threshold. Originally, the Rockets offer sheet was for $9.3 million in the third year.

That’s tough to do even for an owner as rich as James Dolan.

Like it or not, Lin is a risk. He’s still a guy who has 25 starts under his belt and while he may develop into a very nice NBA point guard down the road, he still has a lot of developing to do and given the money he would be owed is considered a big gamble.

When it is all said and done, while this decision won’t go over well with Knicks fans right now, it could end of being the smart move down the road.

This one is a tough pill to swallow as Lin captivated the nation as season ago and became a fan favorite among the masses at Madison Square Garden.

Only time will tell if this is the right decision, but one thing is for certain and that is it is the unpopular decision.

Linsanity may be over in the Big Apple, but what Lin accomplished for a small 25 game stretch certainly won’t be forgotten.

Mar 21, 2012; Philadelphia, PA, USA; New York Knicks guard Jeremy Lin (17) during the fourth quarter against the Philadelphia 76ers at the Wells Fargo Center. The Knicks defeated the Sixers 82-79. Mandatory Credit: Howard Smith-US PRESSWIRE

While it would be disastrous both on and off the court to allow Lin to walk, Knicks’ owner JamesDolan has the final say on anything that will put the team over the luxury tax. Dolan has never been accused of being the smartest owner and doesn’t have a track record for making the best business decisions.

But not even Dolan is crazy enough to put an end to the Linsanity in the Big Apple. Is he?

As mentioned, Dolan doesn’t have a track record for making good basketball decisions, but not even he can screw this one up and that’s saying a lot, given Dolan’s past.

If he were to allow Lin to walk now in order to save the money long term, it wouldn’t just affect the Knicks on the court, as they would be without a point guard, but allowing Lin to leave would hurt the Knicks in other areas as well.

For one the fanbase, who overall doesn’t like Dolan, would officially want his head on a plate.

After the Knicks made positive strides the past couple years, only Dolan could set them back, but he knows the outrage of negativity that would be all over him if he did.

In addition to being a fan favorite, Lin is marketable.

Dolan should see dollar signs in the kid and that could be as important to him as anything Lin does on the floor. It wouldn’t be a shock this year to see Lin as one of the leaders in jersey sales and the possibilities are endless with him.

No, not even Dolan can screw this one up.

Lin is too valuable to him in the long run, and if Lin keeps improving as a player and theLinsanity continues, there are more and more possibilities for Dolan to profit off Lin.

I don’t think I’ve ever said that not even Dolan could screw something up, but that’s the case here.

Not even Dolan can stop the Linsanity in New York.

But imagine the fall out if he did.

Follow Matt Shetler on Twitter for news, reaction and analysis from around the NBA.

Follow Buckets Over Broadway on Twitter

To sum up Berger’s column, sources close to Jackson have indicated he indeed has “the itch” to coach again.

Berger also notes that Jackson’s longtime girlfriend Jeanie Buss said in an L.A. radio interview Friday, “He’s got his energy back.”

May 8, 2011; Dallas, TX, USA; Los Angeles Lakers head coach Phil Jackson argues a call in the third quarter of game four against the Dallas Mavericks for the second round of the 2011 NBA playoffs at American Airlines Center. The Mavs beat the Lakers 122-86. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-US PRESSWIRE

To date, no teams have called or given any indication that Jackson is even on their radar. But his 10 championship rings say that teams should be calling and doing so very soon.

Which begs the question of why wouldn’t James Dolan bother to pick up the phone. Doesn’t he at least owe the fan base and the current Knicks’ players at least that much. why not hire the best coach possible?

One reason he hasn’t picked up the phone is because he’s James Dolan and there’s really no other explanation needed.

The other reason, as Berger points out is that Dolan is more interested in putting on a show than winning a championship.

I’m a fan of Mike Woodson’s, but has he done anything to convince the Knicks that he’s a championship caliber head coach? After being severely out-coached by Miami’s Erik Spoelstra in the playoffs, that answer right now is no.

Could Woodson lead the Knicks to a title? Sure, but there’s no guarantee.

Jackson is a proven winner, not to mention the fact that Carmelo Anthony would be a beast playing on the block in the Triangle Offense? Given the fact that the Knicks haven’t won a title since 1973, you would think Dolan would consider all options.

Even if Jackson is a short-term fix for 2-3 years, wouldn’t it be worth it to potentially win a championship? I know that hiring Jackson doesn’t guarantee a ring, but given the circumstances I would rather go with the proven winner and take my chances.

That alone makes you wonder what the goal for this team really is?

The difference between Jackson and Woodson is Jackson is perceived as old and greedy and Woodson is a guy that when the Knicks front-office says jump, he says “How High?”

Much will be made of Jackson’s salary demands, but that’s really no issue at all as Berger points out, considering the franchise has the highest ticket prices in the NBA.

In September 2010, the Knicks signed a 10-year, $300 million marketing and sponsorship deal with JP Morgan Chase. Annually, that’s more money than each of the 30 NBA teams reaps from the NBA’s national broadcast rights agreements with ABC/ESPN and Turner. Revenue sharing, shmevenue sharing. The revenues from a couple of concert dates with CAA client Bruce Springsteen would just about cover Jackson’s salary, if only the Knicks would call

That’s really all it should take on behalf of Dolan. Just a phone call.

If the goal in New York is to really win a championship, it makes sense to explore all options and hire the best coach you can. I’m not saying it necessarily should be Jackson, but I am saying they are doing themselves a disservice by not exploring all potential options.

But then again, nothing about Dolan has really ever made sense.

According to Marc Berman of the New York Post, two people familiar with the situation have said that the Knicks owner has told Woodson that he will be re-signed and will become the team’s permanent head coach.

Sources: #Knicks never call Phil to gauge interest as Woody is informed by Dolan he’s his guy. nyp.st/K17Ijq

— Marc Berman (@NYPost_Berman) May 9, 2012

There were plenty of rumors since Mike D’Antoni stepped down in March about former Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers head coach Phil Jackson becoming the next head coach, but according to Berman, the Knicks didn’t even bother reaching out to Jackson because he didn’t seem to be interested in the position.

May 6, 2012; New York, NY, USA; New York Knicks head coach Mike Woodson on the sidelines against the Miami Heat during the first half of game four in the Eastern Conference quarterfinals of the 2012 NBA Playoffs at Madison Square Garden. Knicks won 89-87. Mandatory Credit: Debby Wong-US PRESSWIRE

A source reported that Jackson actually wanted Woodson to get the job because Woodson was drafted by Jackson’s mentor Red Holzman.

It looks like the owner is happy with the job that Woodson has done, finishing the regular season with an 18-6 record and winning the first postseason game for the franchise since 2001.

Although it is unclear what type of contract offer he might receive, Berman suggests that a three-year deal is possible.

The Knicks played more like the team everyone expected them to be down the stretch and that is despite a rash of injuries that forced stars Amar’e Stoudemire, Jeremy Lin and Tyson Chandler to miss games.

New York has also been without guard Iman Shumpert in its series against the Heat, so Woodson has had plenty of adversity to deal with.

If Woodson has the opportunity to start fresh next season with healthy stars in Carmelo Anthony, Stoudemire, Chandler and Lin, it will be extremely interesting to see what he can do.

This season hasn’t gone according to plan, but with Woodson seemingly back in the fold, there just may be light at the end of the tunnel after all.

Last night, in his long awaited and much anticipated debut with the Knicks, Carmelo Anthony scored 27 points and grabbed 10 rebounds—leading his team in both categories.  The performance wasn’t overwhelming but it was impressive, and with it comes the serious weight of expectations.  This is New York. A place where the response to a 27 and 10 tally against Milwaukee will soon snowball into a “so where’s the 30, 15, and 8 nightly line?” outcry.  But, for one night, the people seem content. And so here we give you our daily links. Spoiler Alert! A lot of people are really excited.

* Let’s start with the basics.

* This will send chills down your spine. Guaranteed.

* Can the Knicks reach Yankee status?

* Funny, but let’s hope this isn’t you.

* Bloomberg gets in on the action.

* Isiah Thomas involvement is obviously the most worrisome, incredibly damaging long-term scenario any team, person, or fan base could ever have. But is it true? And why does James Dolan squint so much?

*When I said a lot of people were really excited, this guy wasn’t one of them.

* Neither is Rick Reilly.

* Last night was great for New York, and better for the Knicks. But how does Carmelo fit into D’Antoni’s offensive system?

* Let’s not forget Mr. Big Shot. While he may be 34 and on the decline, Billups is a better shooter and decision maker than Raymond Felton. Whether or not his legs can hold up is another story.

Clearly, we all know about the story that has developed over the past week or so since Howard Beck of the NY Times penned this piece back on January 31st. Donnie Walsh, who has been the driving force behind rescuing the Knicks from the depths of NBA/Isiah Thomas hell the past  2 1/2 years, is in contract limbo. He has an option for 2011-2012 that James Dolan must pick up by April 3oth or his current deal will expire on June 3oth. The enigmatic Knicks owner has not talked to the media in four years and his PR lackeys have given no comment on Walsh’s tenuous contract situation.

(more…)

“Donnie finds this entire thing distasteful,” said one NBA source. “He’s had second thoughts about staying but he wants to finish the job.”

[...] Dolan’s insistence on giving Thomas the ambiguous title of consultant angered Walsh, who for two years has been trying to hire former St. John’s All-American Chris Mullin as general manager. Dolan has refused to sign off on hiring Mullin.

The Daily News doesn’t always have the best of reporting, so while Walsh’s interest in conceivably hiring Mullin has been documented, take it with a huge grain of salt, heck, take it with a whole tablespoon of salt, that Walsh definitively tried to hire Mullin and Walsh flat out said no for two whole years.  However, Walsh’s justifiable anger over the hiring of Isiah has been supported by ESPN:

(more…)

Isiah could change his name to Mr. Kotter and Knick fans still wouldn't say welcome back. (Source: Yardbarker.com)

In a move, that despite being foreshadowed for a month, still seems incredibly shocking, the Knicks have rehired Isiah Thomas.  His position is that of consultant, and the team announced his duties are to “assist the team’s senior management in various capacities, including player recruitment.”  For those who instantly stopped paying attention to bball news this off-season after LeBron announced he was taking his talents elsewhere, you may’ve missed the revelations that Isiah had apparently been working for the Knicks behind the scenes.

Not only was he for some reason sent to give a last-second pitch to LeBron on behalf of the Knicks (insert your own joke here about how that convinced LBJ he’d made a good decision to not come to NY), but word was that he also played a role in successfully recruiting Amar’e Stoudemire to join the boys in Orange and Blue.

(more…)

**Great NYT article on David Lee’s improved jump shot:

For the previous 15 games before Saturday, Lee had been as brilliant on the perimeter as he had been at the rim, his rapid evolution on full display. Since Dec. 6, Lee had converted 53 percent of his jumpers from 16 to 23 feet, and 75 percent of his shots from 10 to 15 feet, according to an analysis provided by HoopData.com.

In 35 games, Lee had converted more perimeter shots (86) than he did all of last season (82). He had hit 66 shots in the 16-to-23-foot range, compared with 51 last season and only 18 in 2007-8.

…  Lee’s accuracy rate from 16 to 23 feet was in the low 30s every season until this one. He was shooting 45 percent (66 of 146) in that range this season, well above the league average for power forwards (40.5 percent) and for centers (40.4), according to HoopData.com.

Another interesting thing they note is that Lee was a point guard early on in high school, so he’s got a pretty good handle (in the Houston game he caught one rebound, dribbled up the court, did a nice move on his man, and got a layup) plus he’s one of the Knicks’ better passers.

**On a sad note, the NY Post reports that David Lee’s grandfather is deathly ill.  As a result, Lee may have to leave the team momentarily.  They also mention:

Lee’s grandfather, E. Desmond Lee, made a fortune in coat hangers and became a well-known St. Louis philanthropist, donating $50 million to various charities in the city.

How do you make a fortune in coat hangers?  Did he have some unique design?  Was he the one who invented the part on them fancy hangers that clamps down on your pants & holds ‘em in place?  I’m curious.  Someone do some research on this.  Maybe I can make a fortune in like toothpicks or something.