The New York Knicks have finally reached the mountaintop, capturing an NBA championship for the first time in 53 years. And in the process, owner James Dolan has been vindicated.
After being lambasted as one of the worst owners in sports for decades, Dolan absolutely deserves credit for stepping out of the way and allowing top executive Leon Rose to run the show.
Not only that, but Dolan has handled the finances incredibly well, pushing the limit to build a title-contending ballclub that eventually broke through.
But mere weeks after taking home some hardware, Dolan is already being called out.
Why? For outright saying that the Knicks won’t be going into the second apron this summer, something Fred Katz of The Athletic thinks they should absolutely be willing to do.
“The Knicks are no longer contenders. They are a step above. And you don’t break up title teams for no reason,” Katz wrote. “Just ask the 2011 Dallas Mavericks. Otherwise, what is the goal of team-building at all? So, why would Dolan insist upon staying under the second apron? Maybe he is generalizing with one-size-fits-all logic. Or maybe he just doesn’t want to spend the money.”
While accusing Dolan of being cheap is certainly an unfair criticism given his history (spending has never been Dolan’s problem), it sure would be a poor time to finally tighten the purse strings.
New York could lose all of Mitchell Robinson, Jose Alvarado and Landry Shamet — all of whom were key contributors in the team’s title run — to free agency this summer unless Dolan opens the door for the second apron, but he’s made it clear he doesn’t want to do that.
It’s hard to blame Dolan considering that landing in the second apron would severely restrict the Knicks in free agency and trades, so it would be difficult for them to continue fortifying their roster.
But Katz seems to believe it’s because of the tax payments.
“Dolan has poured money into the Knicks over the years. He’s paid out coaches’ and executives’ contracts just to make changes,” Katz added. “The team fired Tom Thibodeau last summer, a month before the coach’s three-year extension even began. But doling out in the realm of $30 million for three years to change leadership on the bench does not compare to these tax payments.”
We’ll see what Dolan decides to do when free agency begins this week.
