Isiah Thomas goes way back with Chris Webber, who considered the Knicks president his idol when Thomas played for the Pistons. But that didn’t mean Thomas wanted to trade for Webber at yesterday’s deadline.

There were erroneous reports stating Thomas had engaged the Kings in trade talks about Webber. But as The Post reported yesterday, Thomas was wary of Webber’s contract and arthritic knees and never had a single phone conversation with the Kings.

“No, I never spoke to Sacramento about Chris Webber,” Thomas confirmed last night after making two trades that netted the Knicks two first-round picks.

“I love the talent, I love the person. But where we are now, it was a contract we couldn’t afford to take at this time.”

The Knicks’ reluctance was the Sixers’ gain, though Thomas called Philly’s trade “a risk.” Webber is coming off the same microfracture surgery as Allan Houston, and has an identical contract. However, Webber is back and being productive.

“It’s not a big risk in talent,” Thomas said. “But there’s a big risk in terms of injury.

“He is a talent, a great talent. I know this about Chris Webber, wherever he’s gone his teams end up winning.

“That probably won’t be any different in Philadelphia. He’ll make a big difference there.”

But Thomas didn’t think the Knicks could take the gamble, though James Dolan took on $25 million in payroll yesterday.

However, the pacts of Maurice Taylor and Malik Rose are easier to trade.

“To take on contracts of guys making $5, $6 million, getting good solid players, those are good contracts, they’re well-deserved,” Thomas said.

“For us to try to take players like that at this stage of the game, making in excess of 19 million bucks and over the age of 30, those necessarily don’t work for our strategic plan right now.

“Maybe it would work for Philadelphia. That was not the healthy and secure way to go for us.”

Webber has two years left on his pact and will make $21 million in his last season, 2006-07. That Thomas did not call the Kings shows how much the Knicks fear microfracture surgeries.

Houston hasn’t been the same the past two seasons and is on the injured list.

Thomas recently gave a giant hint he wasn’t going to pursue Webber at the deadline when he said, “We definitely have to make sure we don’t keep repeating the sins of the past and stop rehabbing players who have big contracts and big names that are not as young as they used to be.”