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Rich
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http://www.nytimes.com/2004/10/13/sports/basketball/13knicks.html?oref=login
The New York Times
October 13, 2004
Baker Appears Comfortable and Confident With Knicks
By HOWARD BECK
GREENBURGH, N.Y., Oct. 12 - At the low moment of his career, when basketball had been taken from him and sobriety had slipped through his grasp, Vin Baker got a phone call from Isiah Thomas.
Thomas, the Knicks' president, wanted Baker to play basketball for him, which was not an unusual request in the anxious weeks after Baker's release by the Boston Celtics last February.
A few organizations were willing to offer a new start. There was only one, however, that offered such a valuable package - the chance for Baker to renew his career and gain control over his addiction, with as much emphasis placed on the former as the latter.
Thomas made that clear the first time they spoke.
"There was no rush,'' Baker recalled. "There was no anxiety about, 'We need you, we need you, we need you,' from the standpoint of just as a basketball player but, 'We want you to be here and be part of this family.'
"It was more: 'We're going to take care of you and help you every day. And we're going to work with you in every aspect of your life.' ''
It was that sense of commitment and support that Baker needed most - a feeling he never got from Celtics officials last winter.
The framework here has not changed in the seven months since Baker became a Knick, tying himself to two executives who not only empathized with his struggle, but also understood it.
Thomas watched two brothers die of alcoholism. James Dolan, the Madison Square Garden chairman, is a recovering alcoholic. Baker speaks with one or the other nearly every day as he plots his twin paths - the career resurrection intertwined with the personal revival.
That Baker is doing so here, only miles from his Connecticut home and his family, and under the protective watch of Thomas, makes it all seem possible, and makes his comeback story the most compelling subplot of the Knicks' season.
Baker's alcoholism is under control. His body is 10 pounds lighter. His conditioning is better than it has been in years, thanks to an off-season procedure that corrected an irregular heartbeat, which had gone undetected for years.
Baker, who turns 33 next month, is competing with Nazr Mohammed for the starting center position. No matter the result, he is expected to log major minutes in the low post, where he occasionally shows flashes of the skill that made him a four-time All-Star in the 1990's.
Indeed, Baker had begun to regain some of his old form early last season, averaging 14.8 points and 7 rebounds through the first 19 games. Then came his December relapse, and soon after, the Celtics' decision to walk away from him.
Boston officials suspended Baker in January. Weeks later, they terminated his contract - saving more $30 million and having to deal with his disease.
"I think they were waiting for the ultimate demise,'' Baker said, looking back.
Those close to Baker saw a team under new ownership looking for a way to shed payroll. Baker will not go that far, but he does not hide his disappointment.
"I won't ever bash an organization,'' he said. ''But I will go on record as saying that when it did happen, when the relapse did happen, they weren't all too eager about me getting the necessary treatment that I needed at the time.''
The Knicks signed Baker on March 12. He cried at his introductory news conference, acknowledging the opportunity as his last, not merely as a basketball player, "but as a person.''
He played sparingly and averaged only 6.6 points in 17 games, but it was enough to plant the seeds of a new relationship, a new start.
As the Knicks chased big-ticket free agents over the summer, Baker sat patiently. He eventually signed for $3.6 million, with a second year at his option - a solid deal, but less than he might have received elsewhere. Cleveland, in particular, had pursued him aggressively. Yet Baker had found a rare comfort in the presence of Thomas and Dolan, and in the unique intensity of New York. His father drives from Connecticut to attend every home game, and his friends are nearby.
"I just wanted to be part of a family type of atmosphere, and I felt I had that here,'' Baker said.
Perhaps only someone like Thomas - whose brothers Ronnie and Gregory died from the same affliction in a span of three years - could provide that sense of security.
"I happen to believe that those people who overcome those type of addictions have great character and great strength because they're dealing with something daily," Thomas said. "And then at any given moment, their life can spiral down the tubes.''
About a half-dozen teams inquired about Baker last summer, leaving two dozen others that did not. If he was viewed as too great a risk elsewhere, he was viewed as a worthy investment here.
"I was confident of the type of person he was,'' Thomas said. "And I also had a good understanding of the addiction.''
The Knicks are realistic. They know a relapse, however unlikely, is possible. But they say it will not change their commitment.
"It really is day to day, but I can say this: If he does have a relapse, this organization will help him,'' Thomas said. "We will try to help him, because we care about him as a person. I told him, 'It's person first, basketball player second.' ''
Copyright 2004 The New York Times Company
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10/13/2004 11:00 AM