Popper: Don't expect Knicks to make a run at former Golden State GM Bob Myers
Bob Myers is departing as Golden State's president and general manager after building a championship team that captured four titles in an eight-year span. Credit: AP/Godofredo A. Vásquez
With the news breaking Tuesday night that Scott Perry would not be returning as Knicks general manager, the timing presented an exciting possible scenario for the franchise, but one that will not be coming to fruition.
Earlier in the day Golden State president and GM Bob Myers announced he was stepping down. But despite social media exploding with fans hoping that Perry’s departure would open the door for Myers, he wasn’t leaving one of the best jobs in the NBA to serve as a general manager under team president Leon Rose and executive vice president William Wesley.
The expected move in New York may be that there will be no move. The Knicks already have the pieces within the organization to handle the job — and have been doing that for more than a year. With that there might be no need to officially name a replacement.
Gersson Rosas would be a fitting successor to Perry, already having been a visible presence since arriving with a vague title: senior basketball consultant. Rosas worked 16 seasons in the Houston Rockets' front office, much of it spent working with current Philadelphia 76er president of basketball operations Daryl Morey, briefly serving a three-month stay as general manager of the Dallas Mavericks, and then heading to Minnesota as president of basketball operations for the Timberwolves. Rosas, 44, was a constant at courtside with the Knicks last season after being the primary contact in negotiations as the Knicks tried to swing a deal for Donovan Mitchell last summer.
The Knicks have also dealt with other teams through Brock Aller, who is the VP of basketball and strategic planning. Assistant GMs are in place with Frank Zanin in charge of pro scouting and Walt Perrin heading up college scouting.
While Rosas is the natural move, there is some thought that there is no need to provide the title to anyone when Perry’s contract expires, expected to be in August. Even though the contract is not over yet, sources indicated that Perry has already been left out of workouts in recent days. With the assistant GMs handling their assignments and Rosas already doing much of the work of a general manager, the title would be a formality.
Perry had been that voice for the Knicks in dealing with other teams when the current front office took over and kept him in place, a veteran with connections and contacts throughout the league. But even though he was still under contract this season it was apparent that the team was delegating much of the responsibility to front-office staff that Rose and Wesley had brought in. It was Rosas heading up the potential Mitchell deal and then Aller handling the trade that brought Josh Hart to New York.
Steve Popper covers the Knicks for Newsday. He has spent nearly three decades covering the Knicks and the NBA, along with just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
