Isiah Thomas Barred From Having Contact With Knicks Players

The Isiah Thomas era came to an end last week, but as you may recall, it wasn't because he was fired. Nope, apparently Isiah has some pretty strong dirt on team chairman James Dolan, as he somehow was allowed to stay with the team (in some capacity that we are uncertain of) under terms of his "reassignment."

One thing we are certain about concerning Isiah's new role is that it won't involve talking to members of the team he used to coach ... at all. Thomas has officially been barred by the organization from having any contact with what used to be his players. The reasons for this are obvious: if Thomas kept in touch with the Knicks players -- every last one of whom he was responsible for acquiring -- he may, intentionally or not, undermine what the new head coach is trying to do in terms of turning things around.

Now, while Donnie Walsh may be technically doing the right thing by trying to put a ban like this in place, the reality is, with Thomas still lurking behind the scenes, no one can be certain that he isn't speaking with any of his former players. The only way to completely revamp the Knicks and distance the team from the Isiah era is to remove him from having anything to do with the team in any capacity whatsoever. Which is something that at this point, it appears that Dolan is simply unwilling to do.