It only took 10 games for the Knicks 2019-20 season to develop into the all-too-familiar dumpster fire that has become commonplace over the last 20 years.
The Knicks are 2-8 following a 21-point embarrassing loss to the lowly Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday which has prompted upper management to play damage control.
President Steve Mills — who recently celebrated his 500th game with the organization despite a horrific record — and general manager Scott Perry addressed the media following Sunday’s game.
“We’re not happy with where we are,” Mills said. “This is not where we expected to be at this point, 10 games in.”
Their impromptu press conference reportedly came after Knicks owner James Dolan — who has been the one constant throughout the organization’s nightmarish two decades — spoke with them, per SNY’s Ian Begley.
The pitiful thing about this is that the Knicks are actually on a better pace compared to last year where they tied a franchise mark for the worst record in an 82-game season at 17-65.
This year, they are on pace to go 20-62.
Given Mills’ longevity with the organization, he has found a way to squeak his way out of punishment time and time again — meaning a scapegoat will be coming right around the corner.
He is already laying the groundwork to do so, as the job security of head coach David Fizdale and Perry are being called into question.
“We have patience, and we believe in coach,” Mills said. “And we believe in the group that we put together, but we also know that, as Scott and I both have said a number of times, we need to find a way to have a consistent level of effort and execution.”
The dreaded vote of confidence doesn’t necessarily mean anything for Fizdale’s future with the Knicks. According to Begley, changes at the head-coaching position or general manager this season have not been “ruled out.”
On Monday afternoon, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and Malika Andrews added that Mills has “started to lay the internal groundwork for the eventual dismissal,” of Fizdale.
Fizdale has been tasked with developing a raw, inexperienced, and overall unimpressive roster during his year-plus with the Knicks. A roster that was built by Mills and Perry during an offseason in which they lost out on Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant — among other marquee free agents.
Instead, Perry and Mills opted to allocate considerable funds to second-tier free agents. They gave Julius Randle $62.5 million in a three-year deal while Marcus Morris inked a one-year contract worth $15 million.
Along with the acquisitions of Bobby Portis and Taj Gibson — along with the drafting of RJ Barrett, there are higher expectations for this year’s Knicks team compared to last year.
Fizdale took responsibility for the team’s poor start following Sunday’s game, but the head coach can only do so much for a systemically broken franchise.
But Mills could very well be in the line of fire alongside Perry as The Athletic’s Frank Isola reported that Dolan is “plotting to take another run” at Toronto Raptors president Masai Ujiri — who was a top target of the Knicks’ owner after Phil Jackson parted ways with the organization.
