Mr. J
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<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">A source has told ESPN that Larry Brown has told friends there is no question in his mind that he will be fired by the New York Knicks.
The source also said Brown has told friends that no one from the Knicks has spoken directly to him in the last three weeks. Brown had bladder surgery Friday and is recovering at his home in suburban New York.
Brown's agent, Joe Glass, said he did hear from Knicks president Isiah Thomas on Monday and Thomas told him there was no truth to reports that the Knicks wanted to buy out Brown's contract.
"I spoke to Isiah Thomas earlier this afternoon and he categorically denied that there's any substances to what was in the paper," Glass told The Associated Press on Monday.
While no formal buyout talks have begun, it's clear the Knicks have made it known to Brown that they're open to the notion of a settlement on the four years and $40 million remaining on Brown's contract. The New York Post reported Tuesday that the Knicks are hoping the can buy out Brown for $25 million.
Brown signed the deal amid much hoopla last July, taking over what he once called a "dream job" and then leading the Knicks through a nightmarish season.
League insiders told ESPN.com that the Knicks, looking at things from a practical and financial standpoint, feel they'd be best served to cut their losses with Brown rather than undergo the type of large-scale roster overhaul that would be needed to placate him. In other words, why trade Stephon Marbury for less-than-star players whose contracts will carry huge luxury taxes when they can simply buy out Brown and move on with a new coach.
That coach would almost certainly be Thomas, who assembled the roster that Brown found so difficult to coach. Thomas and Marbury have been close throughout their two-plus years together in New York, and there's a school of thought that if anybody is able to get through to Marbury and turn him into a winner -- or at least a better teammate -- it might just be Thomas.
"Based on our record, that's normal for anybody to have that speculation," the Knicks' point guard told the AP of the reports that Brown may be cut loose.</div>
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2447451
The source also said Brown has told friends that no one from the Knicks has spoken directly to him in the last three weeks. Brown had bladder surgery Friday and is recovering at his home in suburban New York.
Brown's agent, Joe Glass, said he did hear from Knicks president Isiah Thomas on Monday and Thomas told him there was no truth to reports that the Knicks wanted to buy out Brown's contract.
"I spoke to Isiah Thomas earlier this afternoon and he categorically denied that there's any substances to what was in the paper," Glass told The Associated Press on Monday.
While no formal buyout talks have begun, it's clear the Knicks have made it known to Brown that they're open to the notion of a settlement on the four years and $40 million remaining on Brown's contract. The New York Post reported Tuesday that the Knicks are hoping the can buy out Brown for $25 million.
Brown signed the deal amid much hoopla last July, taking over what he once called a "dream job" and then leading the Knicks through a nightmarish season.
League insiders told ESPN.com that the Knicks, looking at things from a practical and financial standpoint, feel they'd be best served to cut their losses with Brown rather than undergo the type of large-scale roster overhaul that would be needed to placate him. In other words, why trade Stephon Marbury for less-than-star players whose contracts will carry huge luxury taxes when they can simply buy out Brown and move on with a new coach.
That coach would almost certainly be Thomas, who assembled the roster that Brown found so difficult to coach. Thomas and Marbury have been close throughout their two-plus years together in New York, and there's a school of thought that if anybody is able to get through to Marbury and turn him into a winner -- or at least a better teammate -- it might just be Thomas.
"Based on our record, that's normal for anybody to have that speculation," the Knicks' point guard told the AP of the reports that Brown may be cut loose.</div>
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2447451
