Knicks owner James Dolan continued to leave Larry Brown twisting in the wind yesterday. Dolan refused to meet with Brown and did nothing to squash reports the Knicks coach is on the verge of being bounced.
A source said Brown is anxious to get together with Dolan, who is in his bunker, holed up and plotting his public and expensive divorce from the Hall-of-Fame coach. Brown, who’s recuperating from Friday’s successful bladder surgery, wants to get this mess over with as soon as possible.
As Brown languished in his Greenwich, Conn., home, Knicks President Isiah Thomas, expected to inherit the coaching duties, is still in Hilton Head, S.C., with his college scouts conducting weeklong meetings regarding the draft. Brown, who is a college-basketball maven, has no role in the meetings. It is believed he has not spoken to Thomas in a couple of weeks.
Brown’s agent, Joe Glass, seemed more subdued yesterday and admitted he could not be sure whether Brown will run Monday’s first predraft workouts for draft prospects.
Thomas and his scouts will be on hand, and if Brown is too, it could make for one of the most awkward days in Knicks history.
“I have no idea what they’re planning,” Glass said.
One member of Brown’s camp said, “This is all very bizarre, very surreal, so surreal that maybe it’s not true.” Oh, but it is. Why Dolan is putting Brown off is unclear. Dolan could be trying to torture Brown after this horrendous 23-59 season. Or he may be still consulting with Knicks lawyers on the correct approach in attempting a Brown buyout.
Brown’s recent surgery could be a factor. The Post reported yesterday the surgery corrected Brown’s devastating bladder problem, and he no longer has to use a catheter.
“They’re very elated over that,” said a source close to the Browns. “If you don’t have health, you don’t have nothing. It’s a shame all this had to happen during this recuperation.
A healthier Larry Brown is a better Larry Brown.” Whatever it is, the Knicks are handling this with the same clutziness they handled everything else during their historically rotten season.
For a fourth straight day, a Knicks spokesman declined to comment on Brown’s future.
The Post reported Monday that Dolan’s wishes to part ways with Brown stemmed from the owner’s belief it would be more expensive to add to the player payroll, in an effort to satisfy Brown’s trade demands, than buying out Brown’s contract.
A source said yesterday that Thomas’ and Dolan’s belief in Stephon Marbury was also a major factor.
Marbury’s friends say if there is anyone right now in the league who can get Marbury back to his All-Star caliber self, it’s Thomas. Friends say Thomas is like a “father figure” to Marbury and is someone “he always listens to.” Whether the assistants Brown brought in from Detroit stay on is unclear, but it would be cost-effective if they do. Phil Ford, Dave Hanners and Brendan O’Connor each signed five-year deals, just like Brown. That’s more change for Dolan to eat.
Friends believe Brown will coach again, though there are indications Sacramento GM Geoff Petrie is uninterested in Brown’s ego.
Brown’s best bet is Golden State, where his Hamptons buddy Chris Cohane is owner.
“He’s a very young 65,” a longtime Brown friend said. “He’s a choreographer. If the Knicks gave him a chance, he’d make them a winner. When you have a young family, you’re young.”
