The Knicks have accused the NBA of “harassment” in retaliation amid the league’s rumored investigation into Rick Brunson’s promotion to senior assistant.
“Brunson took Johnnie Bryant’s place and assumed the same salary as Bryant,” MSG Sports said in a statement. “It’s offensive for anyone to claim that Rick doesn’t deserve the promotion. Rick has done a wonderful job and will continue to do so. We view this as further harassment towards the Knicks due to our opposition to certain NBA-related issues.
Brunson was promoted this season after his son, Jalen, signed a contract extension that was celebrated as team-friendly, as the point guard could have earned much more while waiting to be released.
Hence the idea that Rick got a pay raise to make up for the money Jalen left on the table. Such a maneuver would amount to circumventing the ceiling.
Yet, as MSG noted in its statement, Rick was an assistant for many years on five different NBA teams. It’s not like he was plucked from obscurity to become the top assistant. He also served as a lower-level Knicks assistant the previous two seasons.
Bryant served as associate head coach of the Knicks for four seasons before taking the same position last offseason for the Cavaliers.
As previously reported, the NBA and its commissioner, Adam Silver, have clashed with Knicks owner James Dolan over several issues.
Most notable are Dolan’s disapproval of revenue sharing and the NBA’s new media rights deal, prompting the billionaire to write in a memo to other owners: “The pride of owner is what is sacrificed. We are well on our way to becoming a unique, characterless organization. Remember, we did this on the backs of owners like Jerry Buss.
In a separate NBA investigation into the free agency signing of Jalen Brunson, the Knicks were found guilty of tampering and forced to give up a first-round pick.
