RUMOR: Knicks Want Chris Mullin as Next GM

by Atma Brother ONE on Nov 23, 2007 10:03 AM PST in Rumors

The New York Enquirer- oops, I mean New York Post- is running an article today claiming that current Warriors VP Chris Mullin is a top candidate to replace Isiah Thomas in the Knicks front office:

Golden State GM Chris Mullin is expected to emerge as a top candidate for the Knicks GM job if Isiah Thomas eventually is fired from his dual role as coach and president, The Post has learned.

...

The former St. John's sharp-shooting superstar out of Brooklyn told a confidant Wednesday that an employee from the organization, during an informal chat, secretly asked Mullin if he'd be interested in coming to the Knicks if the GM spot is open next summer.

...

A lot would have to happen before New York's favorite son could come home. Mullin is beloved by Golden State owner Chris Cohane [notice misspelling], so the Knicks could have a hard time getting Mullin out of his Golden State contract. A league source said Mullin has at least one more guaranteed year left on his pact after this one, maybe two.

Mullie laughs at these rumors.

A few thoughts on this rumor after the jump...

Will Chris Mullin bolt the Warriors for the Knicks?
I seriously doubt it. Mullin just seems like the kind of guy who's a lifetimer Warrior and Bay Area folk. At this point this Warriors squad is pretty much all his doing (with Chris Cohan's luxury tax fears and bottom line obsessions as well). He even managed to bring his old friend Nellie out of retirement. Can you imagine how much more censure Mullin would have to deal with for the Foyle, Fish, Dun, and Murph contracts if he inked them as Knicks? Or how about the bust draft picks of Ike Diogu, Chris Taft, Stephane Lasme and so far Patrick O'Bryant and Kosta Perovic? Would he really want to trade in the good life of the Warriors and the Bay Area to clean up the off court and on court mess that is the New York Knicks plus the added unkind daily media spotlight of the big apple? Don't think so, but it's just a guess.

Are the Knicks seriously interested in Chris Mullin?
I seriously doubt it. The New York Knicks front office is the premier management position in the NBA and as much as I like Mullin he's just not cut out for that job. In my mind good ol' Nellie is still that mastermind behind this Warriors operation and without him I'd guess the Warriors and Mullin would still be aimlessly searching for a clue. Don't forget that Mullin has made more than his share of mistakes leading up the Warriors front office without Nellie that are arguably dumber than any hoops decision Isiah has ever made. Also the Warriors have only won 1 more game than the Knicks this season so it's not like Mullin is heading up a top hoops squad right now, he just doesn't have to deal with everything under a media media microscope like Isiah and Dolan's Knicks do (not that those offseason scandals helped). But again this is Jim Dolan we're talking about who also doesn't seem to be the sharpest team owner, so maybe Mullin really is their top target despite his mediocre front office resume.

Do you think Mullie will leave the Warriors for the Knicks? How good of a front office man do you think he is?

99% of rumors never happen, but 99% of them are fun to talk about!

Also see:

Thanks to loyal GSoMer muritqua for putting this up in a diary.

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Comments

Three words:

New York Post. I will think nothing more of this story until it is substantiated by another source.

by ivanbe on Nov 23, 2007 11:33 AM PST reply actions

+1

For truth.

24 > 23

WE NEED A BACKUP POINT GUARD

AIM: Jetforze

by OptionZero @ Golden State Of Mind on Nov 23, 2007 11:56 AM PST up reply actions

nice

webpin.

Ballin

by ballin on Nov 23, 2007 12:55 PM PST up reply actions

He doesn't have the hands for scratching.

by bloodsweatndonuts on Nov 23, 2007 1:57 PM PST up reply actions

If we could get a 1st round compensation,

as part of the package, I might have to take him to the Airport myself, other than that, no way.

by theblackpearl on Nov 23, 2007 11:55 AM PST reply actions

consolidate?

seems like an obvious opportunity to consolidate the previous diary on Mullin/NY here

http://www.goldenstateofmind.com/story/2007/11/23/101722/35

For what it's worth, let NY have Mullin - we'll take Coangelo

in Nelson we trust

by hardcore on Nov 23, 2007 1:41 PM PST reply actions

They can have him and add him to thier

legacy of atrociousness. Unfortunately, anything in the Post is just gadfly-motivated hyperbole.

Notice how much smarter Mullin got when he became Nellie's puppet. He's smart to the extent that he never says anything meaningful or interesting as to not expose the fact that he's not that great at what he's doing.

I give him full credit for the Baron for Davis/Claxton trade even though that was two desperate teams hooking up. Not a lot of teams wanted Baron and Mullin had Dale Davis's expiring contract, but I can't prove that St. Jean would have been able to pull it off, so he gets credit.

He also gets credit for drafting Andris. I remember an article by Kawakami where Mullin was pointing out to TK about Andris's hands and instincts and how rare those were. That's the only time I've ever read or heard anything that indicates that Mullin has a "GM Level" understanding of personnel.

If he wants to go to New York, let him although it's likely a baseless rumor. It will be interesting if he becomes a bad GM again once Nelson's gone or if he's actually learned from all the moves that Nelson has told him to make. The whole Mulson nickname is absurd because it implies that Mullen makes any decisions.

by bloodsweatndonuts on Nov 23, 2007 2:10 PM PST reply actions

Wait, what

"Or how about the bust draft picks of Ike Diogu, Chris Taft, Stephane Lasme and so far Patrick O'Bryant and Kosta Perovic?"

Since when has any basketball GM ever took any flak for his second round picks? Mid-late first round picks are hard enough to get right, and hardly anybody ever emerges out of the second round as an actually useful player. If anything he'd be praised for a second round record that merely includes Ellis. As for Diogu, he was a reasonably useful player and then was used in a franchise-saving trade, so I don't see where there'd be any issue over him. O'Bryant, sure, but it's still even a little early to completely give up on him.

Also I'm sure Mullie would have a nice long grace period, as most anybody associated with the Knicks is pretty much in an Anybody-But-Isaiah mindset right now.

That said, no, I don't think he'd wind up in New York, simply because he has such a good situation right now.

by jonathan on Nov 23, 2007 3:23 PM PST reply actions

Additionally

If you look at Diogu's and POB's drafts it's not like there were can't miss players that have emerged that were drafted after the Warriors' first rounders. They just weren't that deep drafts. So it's hard to blame Mullin for missing out on guys like David Lee when two-thirds of the league missed out on him too.

by xacto @ Golden State Of Mind on Nov 24, 2007 8:51 AM PST reply actions

Last Isiah Defender Left

Chances are the report is bogus considering the source. But I don't see anything terribly impressive about Mullin. He is not a good drafter and if he was a GM in New York, an article wouldn't go by that didn't remind him about the Adonal Foyle free agent signing (see Jerome James). The Davis trade and Harrington-Jax trades saved his tenure, but to some degree he lucked up on that second one with his friend Larry Bird.

"The opposite of love is not hate, it's indifference". -- Elie Wiesel

by MODI on Nov 24, 2007 9:40 AM PST reply actions