Isiah doesn't foresee a change

Whether he knows something Jim Dolan refuses to say or is trying to make a last-ditch shoestring catch on his job, Isiah Thomas declared Friday, "I don't foresee there being any changes this year."

We assume he meant this "season" and not this calendar year.

But, much as he did when he spilled his guts (off the record) a few weeks ago about the Anucha Browne Sanders case, Friday (on the record), he spoke both desperately and confidently (if that isn't oxymoronic) about his job security and his 2-9 team to a horde of reporters.

Among the highlights:

- "There've been a lot of people that have failed here and I don't want to be on that list. My job is to make sure that I get myself as far away from that list as possible."

- "To win in New York is the most challenging thing that I've [ever done] because it's so rarely done here. This is a place where you come to really test yourself and this is a place that really tests you. it opens you up, it cuts you and it's a test of yourself as a man, a coach and everything else."

- "The frustration thus far is that we haven't done well and when you get frustrated, the first thing you think about is making changes. But this isn't the time to make changes. Believe me when the time comes I'll be the first to say it, but this is not the time. I've seen and been through a lot of situations in this NBA. This isn't the time to abandon ship and make changes. We'll get through this."

- "I don't think we're that far away. There are several areas we need to tighten up. But it's not like we've fallen off a cliff. We look around the conference and there are a lot of teams struggling to find their identity. We're in that boat right now."

Actually, that last quote isn't from Thomas, but Scott Skiles, coach of the Bulls, Saturday's 2-8 opponent, which is also hearing it from the home fans, although instead of "Fire Scott" they're chanting "KO-be" in the aftermath of the now dormant talk about Kobe Bryant coming to Chicago.

Skiles, though, has a better turnaround track record than Isiah. Last season the Bulls started 3-9 and finished 49-33. Two seasons before, they started 0-9 and 2-13 before finishing 47-35.

Interestingly, too, while Thomas has soft-balled his remarks about Stephon Marbury since last week, Skiles let Tyrus Thomas (Chicago's prime catch in the Eddy Curry deal) have it earlier this week, saying among other things, "We ask him to sprint the floor. To my knowledge in his career he hasn't done it one time."

Skiles eventually backed off the tone of those comments, but wouldn't it be refreshing if Isiah did something like that? About anyone.

For the record, Steph on Friday, when asked if he and his teammates believe they've jeopardized Thomas' job, replied, "I have no comment to that."

He also no-commented a question about whom he thought was the team leader on the floor and then offered the following when asked about the fans booing him: "I understand that it's something they don't know about."

He did not expand on that and you can take it to mean that fans don't know about what happened between him and Thomas last week out west.

Except, as often as he's said that, he's yet to explain it. Until he does, he's a quitter from this point of view.

And from here, Isiah is in trouble, unless he or Dolan explain otherwise.

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One final thought: It will be interesting to see how a Saturday afternoon crowd _ likely to be populated by lots of kids instead of the usual business-suited, hard-core crowd pounding Budweisers for a night game _ reacts to Thomas and Marbury.

Promises, promises, promises. That's all we ever got. Several horrible contracts, several bad coaches, a supreme cancer on the floor, a costing Dolan millions and a lawsuite loss later, he expects people to fall for this promise crap again? No more, my hands are officially washed of this crap. This Isiah running faster and faster and gasping for air is one of the sweetest things I have had in a long time. He should go out with some dignity and just say no more. He's not the first to fail and he certainly isn't going to be the last. It's time.

- "I don't think we're that far away. There are several areas we need to tighten up. But it's not like we've fallen off a cliff. We look around the conference and there are a lot of teams struggling to find their identity. We're in that boat right now."

Yeah, but they don't have payrolls like you've had here in NY. Excuses, excuses, excuses.

Then he should say Knicks. I'm so tired of this crap. Sorry dude.

I learned that lesson mid season last year, when I saw it was a salesmen.