'Losing Isiah' not quite the exec his former teammate is

They were once teammates in the same backcourt, playing a down-and-dirty style of basketball. Now they are in charge of running two different NBA franchises.

One has been wildly successful since moving upstairs — hiding behind the scenes while rebuilding an organization by making wise choices in the draft, allowing a coach named Larry Brown to come and go on his own terms and putting together a team that has already won one championship and has become a perennial contender.

The other has failed wherever he has been, has made terrible personnel decisions, poorly handled the firing of the same Larry Brown and never shies away from the cameras.

How decidedly different have the front office careers of Joe Dumars and Isiah Thomas been since they retired as players. It's pretty remarkable to see how much Dumars has thrived as Detroit's team president of basketball operations while Thomas has faltered as New York's general manager.


Among Thomas' career lowlights: running an entire league, the Continental Basketball Association, into the ground; overseeing the continued decline of the Knicks and picking fights with Denver Nuggets coach George Karl, San Antonio guard Bruce Bowen and ESPN analyst Greg Anthony, among others.

Dumars, meanwhile, has quietly reinvigorated a once-sagging Pistons franchise by stocking his team with hard-working players and hiring good coaches. Detroit wins most of the time. The Knicks usually lose. Dumars drafted a true talent from the Southeastern Conference named Tayshaun Prince. Thomas used a first-round pick on SEC also-ran Renaldo Balkman. Enough said, right?

In Dumars' case, yes. As far as Thomas is concerned..well...not exactly.

Not only is Thomas an incompetent executive, he has also become the face of a failing franchise. On the sidelines at Madison Square Garden, Thomas can be seen, carrying out his duties as head coach of the team he has helped construct. On the podium Saturday, there was Thomas explaining why his players may have taken out their frustration on the Denver Nuggets during the Knicks' 123-100 loss that dropped New York's record to 9-17.

If you haven't heard, there was a little brawl that took place over the weekend, and Thomas seems to have been behind New York guard Mardy Collins' hard foul of Denver's J.R. Smith that caused the two teams to engage in an old-fashioned donnybrook. For Thomas, it's the latest black eye that he and the organization he runs have shared. The man who once played for the Bad Boys is now known for being a bad general manager.

Maybe he should go seek the advice of his old backcourt buddy. At this point, what left is there for him to lose — except, of course, his foolish sense of pride?

Photo Sources: knicksonline.com, ESPN.com