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martin
Posts: 76257 Alba Posts: 108 Joined: 7/24/2001 Member: #2 USA |
2/3/2011 2:26 PM
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/04/sports/basketball/04knicks.html
N.B.A. Fines Knicks $200,000 for Prohibited Workouts The N.B.A. has fined the Knicks $200,000 and one of their scouts $20,000 after concluding that the scout, Rodney Heard, conducted workouts of college prospects that violated league rules, according to two people made aware of the league’s actions. The Knicks were notified of the punishment Wednesday. The fines are expected to be announced later Thursday afternoon. The punishments stem from workouts conducted by Heard in Atlanta in May 2007 and May 2010. Heard, who has been with the club since 2006, was promoted to East Coast scouting director in 2008. The punishment is generally in line with previous cases that involved violations of draft workout rules, although some team executives had expected the Knicks to be forced to forfeit future draft picks as part of any punishment. The Knicks hold the option of imposing further discipline on Heard, who joined the organization when Isiah Thomas was the team president. Significantly, Thomas, who now coaches at Florida International University, was not cited by the N.B.A. in the penalties it handed down. Had the league singled him out, and tried to punish him as well, it might have affected his ability to rejoin the Knicks at some point in the future, something he clearly is interested in doing. As of now, he remains eligible to rejoin the Knicks’ front office if he leaves his job as a college coach. The Knicks attempted to hire Thomas as a part-time consultant last summer while he remained the coach at F.I.U., but were then informed by the N.B.A. that they could not do so because of the conflict it created. The Heard case stems from N.B.A. rules that prohibit teams and their employees from having contact with draft-eligible players before the league’s annual predraft camp, which is held every spring after the regular season ends. Once the camp concludes, teams can work out players individually but under strict guidelines set by the league. The league determined that Heard conducted secret workouts before the camp, presumably to give the Knicks an edge in determining whether a prospect was worth drafting. Brandon Rush, who now plays for the Indiana Pacers, sustained a serious knee injury in one of Heard’s workouts in 2007, according to Yahoo Sports, which first reported in October on Heard’s workouts. Heard also conducted workouts that year with Wilson Chandler, according to the Yahoo report. Chandler did not work out for any organization other than the Knicks before the draft, citing an injured ankle. The Knicks selected Chandler 23rd over all that June and he has turned into a formidable player; he has denied taking part in any illegal workouts. In 2010 Heard conducted several illegal workouts that included Baylor’s Ekpe Udoh, according to Yahoo. The Golden State Warriors selected Udoh with the sixth overall pick in last year’s draft. In the most recent documented case of workout violations, in 2005, the Denver Nuggets were fined $200,000 after Coach George Karl attended workouts at Marquette University, where his son, Coby, was playing. The visit violated rules prohibiting contact between team officials and players who are not yet eligible for the draft. The league initially suspended Karl for three games but later reduced the punishment to two games. In 2002 the N.B.A. fined the Cleveland Cavaliers $150,000 and suspended the coach, John Lucas, two games for including LeBron James, then a high school junior, in a team workout. Over the last decade the league has fined teams $50,000 to $150,000 for other violations of draft rules and in some cases suspended team officials who were involved. Howard Beck contributed reporting. Official sponsor of the PURE KNICKS LOVE Program
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AnubisADL
Posts: 27382 Alba Posts: 13 Joined: 6/29/2009 Member: #2771 USA |
2/3/2011 2:27 PM
I guess no new Bentley for Dolan this year.
 NY Knicks - Retirement home for players and GMs
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Panos
Posts: 30087 Alba Posts: 3 Joined: 1/6/2004 Member: #520 |
2/3/2011 2:35 PM
Too bad they didn't fine them $200,000 and ban Isiah from the NBA.
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abs
Posts: 20060 Alba Posts: 0 Joined: 2/1/2011 Member: #3390 |
2/3/2011 2:44 PM
good news didnt loose any draft picks now back to trade deadline with the chips we have
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VDesai
Posts: 42754 Alba Posts: 44 Joined: 10/28/2003 Member: #477 USA |
2/3/2011 7:15 PM
I was definitely worried we were gonna be losing draft picks
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