Zeke Could Have Made You Some Big Money

I stumbled across this BetUS "Prop Talk" column (no need for you to inquire how I do my stumbling, thank you) a few days ago, and obviously it's not fresh or anything, but it seems pretty appropriate at this stage in Isiah Thomas' career. See, Zeke was a -2000 favorite to be the first coach fired this season.

Donnie Walsh has been hired to replace Isiah Thomas as the Knicks president of basketball operations. It is widely assumed that Walsh will also relieve Thomas of his coaching duties after the regular season ends on Apr. 16.

Wanna bet? Thomas is a –2000 sports betting favorite to be the next NBA coach who either gets fired or resigns. The field is priced at +800. However likely it may be that Thomas' four years and change in the Big Apple are about to end on a sour note, he's not the only one with his head on the block.

I actually tried to find the odds themselves, and was unable to for whatever reason. I wish I had, because had I bet on anything, it would have been "field". There were plenty of people -- Jim Boylan and Larry Krystkowiak come to mind -- that were eligible to be canned before Zeke, especially considering that Donnie Walsh probably wasn't interested in finding an interim coach to manage the circus for just a few games.

But more than anything, I think what's funny about this particular gambling line is that it is pretty metaphorical for Isiah's entire tenure in New York. -2000 is one of the highest money lines I've ever seen. Think about it. 1:20 odds is beyond anything Tiger Woods or the 2008 Patriots ever sniffed. Yet ... he still beat them!

And that's what Isiah has been doing in New York for years. Sexual harassment lawsuits, horrible free agent signings, 30% winning percentages, embarrassing trades -- none of them could get Isiah booted immediately. Finally, James Dolan caved and brought in Donnie Walsh, who canned Thomas, but when we all think back on Zeke's career in New York, yes, we'll be amazed at how awful a job he did. But I think in the end, we'll be more amazed at how long he actually kept the job.