^THE COME UP^ a NYK turnaround Franchise{CLOSED}

[mosdefinately]

I simmed up to this day with the Knicks having their true NBA
record of 9-24, I will take over as GM from here on out to
help turn this franchise around. This will be a more behind the
scenes style franchise. Alot of behind close doors news and
grumblings from the front office. Hope you guys enjoy.
Sorry the presentaion is sub par not really good with
computers but i'll try my best. cheers


New York Knicks
Arena: Madison Square Garden


Owner: James Dolan
GM: Dave Naylor
Head Coach: Mark Aguirre (Interim)
Asst Coach: Tim Snow
Asst Coach: Cris Soler
Scout: Jeff Syzmanski
Trainer: Eric Santos
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Settings:
NBA Live 07 (Todays Rosters etc Korver on Jazz)
82 Games 7-7-7-7 Playoffs
Sim Quarter Length: 12
Sliders: Own
Level: Superstar
PC w/pics
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Roster

Bench

IR


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NEWS & TRANSACTIONS
1/08/08-NYK Fires Coach Isiah Thomas



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[mosdefinately]

THE TURNAROUND: THE FIRST STEP Knicks beat writer Eddie Wood

NEW YORK, NY,

The fans have been heard! The New York Knicks after an abysmal start to the 07-08 season, going 9-24 through the first 33 games of the year have fired Coach/President of Basketball Operations Isiah Thomas. Fans and critics say this move has been made too late and it was only a matter of time before owner James Dolan made this move. Thomas has been highly scrutinized on and off the court costing the team 11 million dollars in a lawsuit filed by a MSG female employee and not being able to steer the shaky ship that is todays Knicks. Problems with player personnel didn’t help his case either, following the Marbury blowup in Phoenix and his team being consistent in only one factor of the game; not playing hard. After the changes made in the off-season the Knicks had expectations of second round playoff appearance and possibly more. They were now considered in the top 5 teams in the East with the frontcourt of Curry and Randolph but all that faded quickly into the season.

In a press conference held today by James Dolan, he introduced a relatively unknown Dave Naylor as the GM and given the responsibility of finding a new coach while interim coach Mark Aguirre handles the reigns until a decision has been reached on the future coach. Naylor has not been in the NBA for the last six years since he was the lead scout for the New Jersey Nets. Since that job he has been serving as the Basketball Operations Manager and Head Scout for Maccabi Tel-Aviv a world class basketball team which produced current NBA player Anthony Parker. Dolan said “Dave I believe is a perfect fit for this organization, philosophically and he has produced results wherever he has been. We believe that this positive trend will continue here and after sitting down with the man, I am a firm believer of what he wants to accomplish with the organization and most importantly we see eye-to-eye on a lot of issues on and off the court. There is no greater relationship more important than that of GM and Owner besides the player-coach… obviously. I have seen too many teams fall apart because of a strain between the GM and Owner and I refuse to let it happen here.” Dolan who was all smiles during the conference continued “Mr. Naylor knows what it takes to win basketball and I see him bringing in players who can do that., he has new and refreshing ideas that has everyone in the office buzzing.”

Naylor, who was under dressed for the occasion, was all business in front of the media and didn’t seem fazed by questions and the swarming of media unlike anything he has been faced with before. Naylor stated ”I am totally honored to stand in front of everyone today as the GM of one of the world’s greatest franchises, the New York Knicks. This is a dream come true for me and I would like to thank Mr Dolan for giving me this opportunity, I won’t let you down in your decision.”, he went on to talk about the direction of the team “I understand where we are at and the situation we are in right now but I promise you this team will play hard, they will represent the Knicks and the city of New York with pride and nothing less than class. I think the city has seen enough of what has been going on and this year and it is the time for change. But it will take some time, it will not happen overnight but I give you my word that things will move in the right direction.” When asked who is safe and who is not and on rebuilding the once great franchise Naylor replied “Players that play hard are safe that is all I can tell you. Don’t think that this is a rebuilding year, the Knicks have been rebuilding for a while now and it hasn’t gotten much better in those years. I do not have some 5 year plan on bringing in young guys and waiting for them to mold, I believe each team has a window for serious playoff runs and I believe the Knicks window started this year (with the addition of Randolph) and these windows shut pretty easily so I will try my hardest to keep that window open for as long as possible for this franchise.” The last topic touched on was the coaching position, which Naylor responded “Me and Mr. Dolan will sit down and talk about who are candidates for this job and until then I cannot give you much more than that. We will sit down contact people we are interested in and take it from there.” This is a new breath of fresh air for a franchise in need of one that is for sure. We can only wait and see what is in store next for the city and its beloved Knicks.



Updates coming soon!

[mosdefinately]

NOTES OF THE FIRST DAY ON THE JOB


• Got poked fun at as soon as I stepped out my car (Ford Explorer) by players for not having a car that matched my salary. Who says a GM doesn’t get hazed.
• It took all of about 5 minutes before Dolan works into the office and bugged me about the coaching situation. I thought he was never around this place (or so I heard), but he was around me like white on rice all day.
• Chatted with Dolan for hours about potential coaches, went through about every coach who ever played the game. I think we both decided on Red Auerbach at the end of it.
• We both agreed on getting someone who the players respect but at the same time feel comfortable with. We are trying to build a family situation here we both agreed on. Oh and basketball philosophy is kind of important too.
• Coaches who we will be in contact with are the following: Scott Skiles, Paul Silas, Patrick Ewing, Rick Carlisle, Eric Musselman, Terry Porter, Brett Brown and Jeff Bzdelik.
• Made phone contact with all coaches except Silas, apparently he still works with Morse code. Got word back to us that he is not interested (age). Just a feeling out process and to touch base to scrap any names of the list. Scratched is Ewing and Silas. Ewing interested with Howard and says he is not ready to coach, Silas well he is ……. old.
• Scheduled board meeting for later on in the week to go through all the coaches with all Knicks exec’s and VIP to narrow list down to three, hopefully Carlisle, Bzdelik and Skiles. All have the qualities we are looking for in a coach.We will bring all coaches in for one on one meetings soon.
• In love with the teams cafeteria, no wonder why all GM’s are fat cats.
• By the days end probably made over 100 phone calls, trying to get background info on all coaches, from players to other coaches to a waterboy. I could probably tell you Skiles’ favorite color and his mothers maiden name.
• Player personnel was agreed to be discussed after coach is appointed. No point starting on two different pages, this is a team effort after all.
• Brought in Aguirre for a meeting to tell him our plans. Seemed fairly ok with the plans, thought he should at least finish the season off. Thought I should of told him if it weren’t for Thomas you wouldn’t be here so be thankful for this coaching exposure


Coaching analysis and breakdown will be done tomorrow.

[Pistol]

I like your last two posts you seem to be a pretty good writer. I'll be following

[homicide1550]

Good Luck with this bro!

[mosdefinately]

I like your last two posts you seem to be a pretty good writer. I'll be following

Thanks, and I only got a C in English.....stupid professor.

[mosdefinately]

Good Luck with this bro!

Thanks appreciate it mate

[mosdefinately]

COACH ANALYSIS

Met with the board today and we all went through everything about these prospective coaches, we all gave individual grades on 5 aspects with each coaches. After all grades were collected averaged them all out, the top three coaches with the highest scores will be called in for an interview. Most scores are based on compatibility with want we want within this organization.

Came to agreement with Coach Aguirre today, gave him 12 games to show what he can do with a coach. If he does a remarkable job he can stay on for the rest of the year and potentially sign on for more but if not after that 12th game its up to the new coach if he stays on or not as an assistant. So here are the evaluations of potential coaches.

Scott Skiles

Offense: 12/20 Defense: 18/20
Teamwork: 18/20 Ethics: 14/20
Administrative: 17/20
Overall: 81/100
THOUGHTS: Dolans pick right here if he had his way, but I have my doubts. Doesn’t give the players the respect needed in order to get that connection with them that all top tier teams have etc Celtics, Spurs. Feel that players play hard for him in fear of losing minutes. Offensively philosophy doesn’t really match ours of a slow controlled game, guess that comes from being a former pg. Has a knack for making right moves in trades but yet again not good at dealing with contracts (Deng, Gordon). Has the team mentality we are looking for. Meeting will determine a lot with him

Jeff Bzdelik

Offense: 11/20 Defense: 16/20
Teamwork: 18/20 Ethics: 17/20
Administrative: 15/20
Overall: 77/100
THOUGHTS: Jeff is right on the money with relating to players and getting them to work hard and believing in the overall teamwork and hard work concept, totally agree with each other there. Dolan believes he doesn’t really want a guy who has been through this franchise before coaching the team (Bzdelik was lead scout for Riley). Offense and Defensive philosophy are just okay in my books but he is a strong candidate at this point.

Eric Musselman

Offense: 15/20 Defense: 13/20
Teamwork:15/20 Ethics: 10/20
Administrative: 15/20
Overall: 68/100
THOUGHTS: That DUI killed his chances here, as the board does not want anyone with a dodgy past. The last thing we need as issues like this brought up. I think everyone on the board respected him as a coach and what he has done but that DUI has come to bite him in the ass this time. Scrapped off the list

Terry Porter

Offense: 14/20 Defense: 15/20
Teamwork: 15/20 Ethics: 18/20
Administrative:13/20
Overall: 75/100
THOUGHTS: Porter was well received by the board, a lot more than I suspected. They must see something that I don’t. I believe personality he is a good as they come, a true gentleman and is very philanthropic. Basketball wise he has the fundamentals to become a great coach but right now he should stick to being an assistant and master his craft.

Brett Brown

Offense: 13/20 Defense: 16/20
Teamwork:15/20 Ethics: 19/20
Administrative: 10/20
Overall: 73/100
THOUGHTS: Brown was another Dolan choice, I have seen very little from Brown other than his stint in Australia. Being apart of the Spurs organization doesn’t hurt his case either, but the general consensus was that he needs to have a bigger role in an organization before he can start as a head coach, the Knicks are along way from a team in Australia. We are looking for a more proven coach at this time.

Rick Carlisle

Offense: 16/20 Defense: 17/20
Teamwork: 16/20 Ethics: 16/20
Administrative: 15/20
Overall: 80/100
THOUGHTS: Carlisle has the defensive and team mentality that we are looking for here. Can handle damage control with ease at the brawl fiasco in Detroit (took undermanned squad to winning season and playoff appearance). Can deal with off court drama and players etc Ron Artest, Stephen Jackson. Shown what he can do with a good team with Detroit (back to back conference finals appearances). Concern on how he gets on with rookies and his rotation but otherwise a very strong candidate.


Meetings with Carlisle, Skiles and Bzdelik next

[mosdefinately]

More Updates coming soon

[mp3]

NEWS & TRANSACTIONS
1/08/08-NYK Fires Coach Isiah Thomas

Love it already !

[Lamrock]

Aside of your quadruple posts (you only need 1 post when you are replying to multiple people, and saying that "more updates are coming soon" is just spam. I know I sound like Chaser, but come on...), this is an excellent dynasty. I am loving the coaching reports, and this will definitely be one worth following.

Trade Marbury and Curry, and make Skiles coach.

[Chaser7]

How does that sound like me?! Lamrock, you really love to put people down... In fact, if I recall from many of the dynasties last year, you were INCREDIBLY notorious for putting out double-posts and stuff... so hypocrit, but yea this is an excellent dynasty.. keep it up!

[Lamrock]

Well, when you post in any other topic, it ends up coming out as humorless, dull and off-topic. But here in the dynasty section, you feel the need to reply to every single topic, whether you have something to say or not, to nitpick some stupid useless detail.

And when I double-posted, it was when I actually had something to say. I never had quadruple posts for one update, notification of future updates and replies to comments. And besides, even if its something that you don't do, doesn't mean its not good consructive criticism.

[Chaser7]

I'm pm-ing you before this becomes a flamewar..

[mosdefinately]

COACHING INTERVIEWS

Today spent all day in the office with Dolan (hooray for me), we found out as much as we can on the three candidates left and talked deeply about what we are looking for. Here I am a week into the job and this decision could make or break me, if I screw up I will be heading out the door but if there is improvement I buy more time to fix what is wrong within this organization. Skiles was the first one scheduled to come in, then Bzdelik and then Carlisle. They were all interviewed in Dolans office throughout the day. So after the proceedings that ended roughly at 11pm here are the thoughts of how the interviews went.

SKILES

Post Interview Comments: For some reason Dolan has changed his mind on Skiles after the interview, he has gone from behind the frontrunner to now being in with the rest. I thought it went alright aside from the fact he was late with no forward notification (I think that is what got to Dolan). He is very straight edged tell is like it is and doesn’t beat around the bush, it took him all of about five minutes to say how bad of a team we are and how bad the players are. I don’t mind him being straight forward like that but it looked like Dolan didn’t like him attacking his team like that but personally he needed to hear it. Not the best communicator to say the least we asked about problems he had with players in Chicago and was quick to push the blame on them and try to convince us it had nothing to do with him. Basketball wise I liked what he was talking about and agreed with him on many aspects of the game, but I still have one concern why couldn’t he keep up his success in Chicago and why they were so quick to fire him and not let him tough it out, did the players give up on him? Did the players just block him out and didn’t listen? Who knows, I have heard about 20 different theories and stories and Skiles just gave me standard answers like we just couldn’t score, we have no inside game blah, blah, blah. I think he has it as a coach but I question his longevity. I am looking for a coach for the next 10-20 years not 3 or 4. Skiles still has a good shot at being the coach here but one more board meeting to discuss issues will ultimately decide.

BZDELIK

Post Interview Comments: Jeff came into the office mid-afternoon and we were all hungry so we went out for lunch and to discuss what we had to discuss. Jeff is very calm not matter the circumstance which I liked, it shows when push comes to shove he is going to keep his cool. Dolan thinks he is a bit too girly (probably because he ordered a salad for lunch) but he thinks players will walk over him and do their own thing instead of the team thing. He has all the communication skills we want in a coach, he is able to keep his players on his side which is great. Basketball philosophies, we like what he brings but not as much as Skiles who fit what we want a bit better but it was still a good enough formula to win games in the league. Bzdelik is really high on team chemistry too which is our main focus in rebuilding this team, because in my books that can win you 10-15 games alone because most teams don’t have what the Spurs and the Celtics have and that is evident on the floor. We like the way he handles young players and is one of the most advanced scouts you could meet. Knows a player when he sees one, and can prepare for an upcoming team exceptionally well. Dolan still has his doubts but I think he is right up there with Skiles in my books.

CARLISLE

Post Interview Comments: Unlike Skiles Carlisle contacted us ahead of time to tell us he was going to be late because of the traffic. Advantage Carlisle. We talked about everything aside from basketball tactics and stratergies, how you handle players, practice routines and everything else that is consumed with this job. We met half way on a lot of those outside the court issues which is fine by me because each coach isn’t going to be my parrot and say yes to all my ideas and agree with my way of thinking. I don’t really like his judgment of players and the way he handles rookies, he thinks the most prove themselves in practice before the hit the court but I have seen too many players who cant hit a shot or do anything right during practice but when those lights come on in the arena they ball. Basketball wise he is just as good as Skiles, if not better fit for our organization. I like the way he handles rough situations it shows class to me. I didn’t think his heart was in this meeting like its what he really wanted, I think he is more happy to stay on television for a bit and stay away from the stress of coaching but I don’t know that was just my gut feel. Overall we didn’t agree on a lot of things but he is a class guy and knows how to win and could benefit our organization.

Coaching Announcement will be made in a week
Till then game reviews.

[Pistol]

GO WITH PORTER!!!! I like him the best...He seems to be the best fit for you in my opinion, can't wait for games to start...fuckin skiles being late, what an idiot!