Knicks decide not to pursue Iverson
Photo credit: Getty/Stephen Dunn | Allen Iverson of the Memphis Grizzlies on the court against the Los Angeles Lakers on November 6, 2009 at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California.
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The Answer is no longer a question for the Knicks.
Team president Donnie Walsh announced Friday that after several days of deliberation, the Knicks have decided to retreat from their pursuit of Allen Iverson.
"We're not going to be making additions at this time to our team,'' Walsh said at practice at the MSG Training Center. "It ends the speculation about Allen Iverson. It has nothing to do with Allen Iverson. It's just the stage our team is in right now and what we've been trying to do since we got here with building a team for the future.''
A person with knowledge of the situation said Walsh - who talked to several confidants throughout the NBA, including Larry Brown, about the situation - decided not to go through with it based on several factors:
1. The move wouldn't improve the team enough to compete for the playoffs.
2. The impact it would have on playing and developing the younger players, such as rookie Toney Douglas.
3. The potential for unwanted controversy, which often follows Iverson, after spending most of last season dealing with Stephon Marbury. "That,'' the source said of the Marbury buyout battle, "really took a lot out of [Walsh].''
It was exactly a year ago to the day that Marbury, after being benched for the first 11 games of the season, opted not to play for the shorthanded Knicks in Milwaukee and then engaged in a public war of words with coach Mike D'Antoni. Four games later, he again refused to play in Detroit and Walsh banned him from the team. It took three months before the sides could work out a buyout, which perpetuated more unwanted tabloid drama for a franchise that has had more than its share during the past few seasons.
According to a person with knowledge of the situation, the biggest concern about adding Iverson to the roster was the potential for more unwanted controversy.
"If it didn't work,'' the person said, "it could really blow up.''
"I think when we re-thought it, we felt like it could hurt our development in the future,'' Walsh said, "so we want to go the way we are going.'' The final decision on Iverson was made by Walsh, who said he kept Garden chairman James Dolan "aware of what the situation was'' and added, "There were no orders down to me to do one thing or another.''
Multiple sources have said that despite this decision, Walsh is very aware of the need to upgrade the talent on the current roster and has engaged in several conversations to make a move that works within the 2010 salary-cap plan.
With no other options at this time for Iverson, 34, it could mean the end of a brilliantly spectacular, controversy-laden career for the 11-time all-star, six-time scoring champion and former NBA MVP, one of the most prolific small guards the game has ever seen.
D'Antoni initially endorsed the plan to bring Iverson to the Knicks and Walsh strongly considered making a contract offer. But he came to the conclusion that despite a 2-9 start for his team, there was not enough of an overwhelming case to make the move. Not even to pacify a frustrated fan base, of which an overwhelming majority wanted to see the future Hall of Famer on the Garden stage, if only for this season as everyone waits for 2010-11. "I don't think you can build a basketball team on polls,'' Walsh said. "If you do the right things, hopefully fans will see why we did what we did.''
Walsh initially wasn't in favor of bringing Iverson to the team when the opportunity first presented itself earlier in the week after the Grizzlies placed Iverson on waivers. On Tuesday, Walsh called it "a long shot'' but still put in the proper due diligence to investigate the option, especially after it became clear that Iverson wanted to come to the Knicks and that D'Antoni - who was against signing Iverson as a free agent during the summer - was on board.
The Knicks - who are owned by Cablevision, which also owns Newsday - snapped a six-game losing streak against the Pacers on Wednesday. They face the Nets (0-12) at the Meadowlands on Saturday afternoon.
With Barbara Barker
