From out of the shadows Steve Mills emerged last week, pulling back the curtain to reveal a little of himself and to provide a glimpse on how things really work inside the Knicks organization and Madison Square Garden.
It was billed as a state of the Knicks address but Mills, either deliberately or accidentally, used the invitation only as a Q&A to verify that he is and always has been a powerful voice within James Dolan’s inner circle. Moreover, Mills has proven time and again to be an executive highly skilled at the art of survive and advance. And the way you do that at the World’s Most Famous Arena is by staying close to Dolan and avoiding potential landmines.
For example, Mills’ comments last week on the disastrous free agent signing of Joakim Noah were quite telling.
“Obviously I’m disappointed it worked out the way it worked out,” Mills, the Knicks president, said on Friday. “I don’t know that, had it been just my decision, I don’t know that I would have signed him.”
Mills, of course, was Jackson’s general manager during Jackson’s failed run as the NBA’s highest paid team president. It is highly uncommon for an executive to publicly distance himself from responsibility of a major free agent signing, especially when that executive was part of the regime that signed the player, in this case Noah.
Did Mills voice his opposition at the time to either Jackson or Dolan? Perhaps Mills did exactly that but Jackson, who ultimately had final say, signed Noah regardless.
However, the public posturing after the fact brings to mind what Lakers owner Jeanie Buss, Jackson’s former girlfriend, said two months ago about Jackson’s fatal mistake in New York: “He should’ve made sure (to control) who was surrounding him because the people close to you will take the knife and put in in your back.”
Buss didn’t name names and Jackson’s record, with the exception of drafting Kristaps Porzingis, is hard to defend. But Mills benefitted from Dolan firing Jackson, who at the start of his tenure agreed to add Mills to his staff at Dolan’s urging.
Meanwhile, Mills was given the power to build his own front office. In fact, while the Knicks were searching for a new general manager, Mills signed Tim Hardaway Jr. to a free agent offer sheet. It was during that time that former Cavs general manager David Griffin, the leading candidate to run the Knicks, abruptly removed his name from consideration. The feeling was that Griffin feared that the “full autonomy” he was promised was just lip service since Mills went ahead and signed both Hardaway and Ron Baker without consulting him. Baker, whose two-year, $9 million contract raised eyebrows across the league, was released two weeks ago.
“Steve knows his way around that place,” says one former Knicks executive. “Don’t underestimate him.”
Mills, the guy who came to the Garden from the league office as a marketing executive only to be exiled by Dolan in 2009, returned in 2013. Two years later, Dolan brought back Isiah Thomas to run the WNBA Liberty. Both Mills and Thomas were prominent players in the Anucha Browne Sanders harassment lawsuit that cost MSG $11.6 million.
Thomas became the face of the lawsuit and for that he and Mills had a falling out. Despite their close association with Dolan, Mills and Thomas are barely on speaking terms. In fact, when Thomas was hired by the Liberty, Jackson and Mills advised Knicks players who may cross paths with Thomas at the team’s practice facility in Westchester to keep their contact with him to a minimum.
Thomas privately yearns for a second chance and feels that his draft picks — Trevor Ariza, David Lee, Nate Robinson, and Wilson Chandler — don’t receive the recognition they deserve. But Dolan and Thomas both admit that a return to the Knicks will likely never happen. Instead, Mills’ comeback has resulted in him becoming the highest ranking basketball official at MSG.
For the Long Island-raised and Princeton-educated Mills, it is the culmination of a lifelong dream. But the job is demanding and at times thankless. And Mills is still learning on the fly. Words and actions matter, and Friday’s press conference was not a great moment for the new Knicks president.
For starters, a beat writer for the New York Daily News was not invited to the informal interview session. In all likelihood, Dolan gave the order. The Chairman of MSG was probably upset that he was pictured on the back page of the paper with the headline “Do It!” — a response to Dolan telling ESPN that he would consider selling the Knicks for the right price.
If Dolan was responsible for banning a reporter, it at least shows that contrary to what he said to ESPN Dolan is still very much involved. As for Mills, he either willingly went along with it or didn’t do enough to stop it. For a guy who likes to fancy himself as running a progressive and diverse front office, Mills comes off as an executive who condones censorship. Craig Robinson, the Knicks VP of Player Development, is Mills’ former college teammate as well as Michelle Obama’s brother. The Knicks enjoy publicizing that connection, yet Mills seems to be adopting the media policies of a different administration.
In stating his evaluations of the current roster and the team’s dreadful record, Mills was more measured with his words. He is smart to call this season a rebuilding year, especially with Porzingis sidelined until at least February. Mills then lowered expectations in advance of this summer’s free agency. If the Knicks strike out, Mills can simply say we’re building through the draft. That’s a wise strategy.
What Mills can’t say publicly, because it would violate the NBA’s tampering rules, is that the Knicks are all in on free agent-to-be Kevin Durant. The Warriors superstar is and should be the Knicks’ number one free agent target. And for what it’s worth, according to several NBA executives who attended last week’s G-League Showcase in Las Vegas, the general consensus is the Knicks are still very much in play to land Durant.
“Everyone says Knicks,” said one prominent player agent.
That type of signing would elevate Mills’ standing, not only with Dolan but also Knicks fans. In the meantime, Mills would be smart to choose his words carefully.
Jackson drafted Porzingis, Frank Ntilikina and Damyean Dotson. Considering what Mills said of Noah, it is only natural for the aforementioned trio to wonder if Mills supported Jackson’s decision to draft them. Or is it now open season on Jackson’s players?
Mills even placed current general manager Scott Perry in an awkward position. Will Perry receive the proper credit for the moves that pay off or just blame for the duds? Think about it: Mills threw Mr. 13 Rings under the bus. Perry should always be mindful of the prevailing culture at Madison Square Garden.
Last week was the 15th anniversary of one of the wildest three days in recent Knicks history. Dolan fired Scott Layden and hired Thomas, at the suggestion of Magic Johnson, to run the Knicks. The following day, Latrell Sprewell came back to the Garden for the first time since being traded to Minnesota and spent the night screaming profanities at Dolan.
During Thomas’ press conference photo-op, he was flanked by Dolan and Mills. More than a decade later there was a similar photo during Jackson’s introductory press conference; Dolan on the right, Mills on the left. Mills stood next to Jackson during Noah’s press conference.
Do you sense a recurring theme? No two executives have been associated with the Knicks longer than Dolan and Mills. The message from MSG that this is a different regime and a new culture isn’t entirely accurate. Perry and head coach David Fizdale are new. Dolan and Mills have been around forever.
During Mills’ first seven years as COO, the Knicks went 183-309. The Knicks are 155-289 since he returned. Meanwhile, during the four years Mills worked for Magic Johnson Enterprises, the Knicks went 161-151. There’s no hiding from that.
As Bill Parcells famously said, you are what your record says you are. This was the job Mills always wanted. The same job Thomas and Jackson had and lost. So it’s about time for Mills to own it.
nick.
mind posting that article on Steve Mills from The Athletic. Wanna see if Isola still writing in his butthurt ways.
