Let's get real and stop with the crap.
1. On SAR, Thorn didn't administer the physical, but as president of basketball operations, he ordered a more thorough MRI than other teams did. It's why the Nets orthopedists found something other teams' orthopedists didn't and which the Sacramento orthopedists dismissed. When you are a responsible corporate official, it is your job to make sure that risks are minimized. So with the support of your owner, you ask for the best possible PROFESSIONALS. Because he did, the Nets' risk was limited.
2. On Traylor, Thorn didn't administer the echo-cardiogram, but as president of basketball operations, he demanded it be included in the battery of tests. At the time, the NBA didn't require echo-cardiograms, which, unlike EKG's, pick up signals that show hidden dangers. Some teams required them. Some teams didn't. The reason: they're expensive. The NBA now requires them in all physicals. Thorn saved that guy's life (He then went out and laundered money for his cousin's violent drug gang.)
By being prudent and not being cheap, Thorn made certain risks were minimized. You may recall he was criticized for doing so, and not just by fans, but by others, including writers and other executives. You should, as someone who claims to be a Nets fan of long standing, give him credit for that.
Thorn did offer SAR a new contract which would have guaranteed him a third year (this year) and if he had played without a knee injury his first year, so would the fourth year (next year). SAR luckily for the Nets rejected it.