Category: New York Knicks Blog

Carmelo Anthony is in Puerto Rico to unveil remodeled basketball courts at a public housing complex and play a bit of softball with celebrity friends.

It is the third time the New York Knicks star has visited the U.S. territory in as many years to rebuild basketball courts through his charitable foundation.

“There’s plenty of kids down there who need role models,” he said during a press conference Thursday. “I grew up in a situation like that. … It was survival of the fittest.”

The two newly remodeled courts, located in the northern city of Bayamon, are used by the island’s top minor league players and have produced players now part of the island’s Superior League, said Sports and Recreation Secretary Henry Neumann.

“It is an emblematic court,” he said.

— Reported by the Associated Press

According to a source close to the former Knicks president, Thomas and Garden chairman James Dolan have had numerous discussions about a position in the organization, but Thomas has been reluctant to accept the job offer.

“Isiah is very close with Jim Dolan but he’s told me that he’s not ready to jump back into the NBA just yet,” said the source, who was with Thomas on Friday at the Basketball Hall of Fame induction ceremony in Springfield, Mass. “There’s this perception out there that Isiah is desperate to get back, but that’s false. I think it will eventually happen but just not now.”

Thomas, who presented inductee Chet Walker at the ceremony, did not return phone calls on Saturday. One day earlier, he was spotted in a Manhattan hotel having breakfast with Dolan, which according to the source is not uncommon.

“They’re friends. They talk all the time,” the source added.

— Reported by Frank Isola of the New York Daily News

Knicks owner James Dolan staged a business meeting with Isiah Thomas yesterday morning at the Mandarin Hotel in Midtown, according to a person familiar with the situation.

A band of security men surrounded the two men who were both dressed in business suits in a quiet corner of the lobby. Thomas has lobbied to return to the organization

since he was fired as the Florida International basketball coach last spring. The meeting took place two days after the resignation of MSG sports president Scott O’Neil, who, according to a source, helped convince Dolan rehiring Thomas wasn’t a good move for the Knicks brand.

— Reported by Marc Berman of the New York Post

Knicks veteran guard Ronnie Brewer began rehab Friday after undergoing surgery to repair a meniscal injury to his knee, according to his Twitter account.

“If y’all haven’t already heard I had successful meniscus surgery,” he wrote on his verified Twitter account @RonnieBrewerJr. “Started rehab this morning. Minor setback for a major comeback.”

The Knicks said Brewer tore the meniscus in his left knee in the last two weeks and is expected to miss six weeks.

— Reported by Bobby Bonett of New York Newsday

A source familiar with the Knicks’ free-agency plans told ESPNNewYork.com that the team is considering signing forward-center Sean Williams, who was waived by the Rockets this week.

There has been some speculation that the Knicks are interested in unrestricted free agent Josh Howard, but according to the source, they are not into him. Instead, the team wants to add a big man — likely to serve as a backup to Amare Stoudemire on the depth chart. Currently, they don’t have one.

There are more attractive bigs on the market, like Kenyon Martin, Andray Blatche, Louis Amundson, Chris Andersen and D.J. White. But those players have been looking for more than the veteran’s minimum, which is all the Knicks can offer.

— Reported by Jared Zwerling of ESPN New York

Knicks unrestricted free agent Baron Davis will remain with the team in “some capacity,” his agent Todd Ramasar told ESPNNewYork.com on Thursday.

The Knicks won’t re-sign Davis as a player because the 33-year-old point guard suffered a horrific right knee injury in last season’s playoffs, and it’s likely he could miss the entire 2012-13 campaign. But since the spring, the Knicks have treated Davis like one of their own. The team has allowed him to do physical therapy with their training staff, and most recently, management has approached him about staying on board this season.

Ramasar said Davis is very excited about the opportunity, but it won’t involve a job title or him sitting on the bench during games. Instead, it will likely be more of a mentorship role behind the scenes and during practices.

— Reported by Jared Zwerling of ESPN New York