The New York Knicks were once one of the NBA’s flagship franchises. Playing in the city the league’s offices call home, the Knicks spent much of the 1990’s competing for an NBA championship. While they never quite got over the top, the Knicks made the playoffs for 14 straight years and made two Finals appearances over a span from 1988-2001. Since then, however, the team has struggled to find an identity, either in the front office, on the bench or on the court.
Since 2001 the Knicks have gone through 13 different coaches, countless front office changes, blown plenty of draft picks, made bone-headed trades and roster moves and basically redefined what it means to mismanage a team. Since the turn of the century the Knicks have made the playoffs just four times, losing in the first round in three of those. They are, in every way, one of the real whipping boys of the NBA.
Their latest effort to turn around the team’s fortunes is to put a former player agent in the big chair.
Once a player agent, Leon Rose will now officially become the new President of the New York Knicks on March 1. Rose verbally committed to the role earlier in February. He has spent the last few weeks ending his ties with his clients. It makes sense to put Rose in charge. He has experience with contracts and salaries.
Reports came out on February 6 that the Knicks were nearing an agreement with Rose, but Owner James Dolan came out shortly after and said the team was still looking for the right candidate. It seems that Leon Rose was the only man for the job.
Rose is 59 years old, and has been around the league for many years. He has represented players such as Chris Paul, LeBron James, and Joel Embiid.
The Phoenix Suns tried a similar move with player agent Lon Babby in 2010. He was hired as team president. A year later he had stepped down from the position. It was a complete disaster besides the Devin Booker draft. He held a senior advisor role after that.
It feels like there is always uncertainty surrounding the Knicks. We will see if Rose can handle the pressure that comes with being in charge, especially in New York. We know many before him have failed. The future of interim head coach Mike Miller is in question, as is so much more.
