Newsday’s Greg Logan on a player eligible for this month’s NBA Draft with a pedigree Knicks fans should be very familiar with.
As the bizarre charade involving owner James Dolan and coach Larry Brown continued yesterday, the Knicks were reminded of a previous Madison Square Garden coup gone bad. Stanford guard Dan Grunfeld, son of former Knicks president Ernie Grunfeld, worked out for the team he worshipped until his father was ousted just before the Knicks’ last trip to the NBA Finals in 1999.
“I was obviously disappointed for my family for my dad to leave the Knicks because I loved the Knicks so much, but it’s a business,” Dan Grunfeld said. “I understood that then, and I understand it now.”
Grunfeld was the leading scorer in the Pac-10 two seasons ago when he suffered a major knee injury. Now, he must prove himself and likely is a second-round pick at best in the June 28 draft.
Because his father has moved on to fashion playoff teams in Milwaukee and now Washington as team president, Grunfeld said his loyalty has shifted. But for a day, he was the same kid who left school early to attend Knicks games (it’s OK, he got his degree in four years at Stanford) and ran around practice at an early age.
If the Knicks aren’t interested, someone wondered if Grunfeld might work out for the Wizards. “No, no,” Grunfeld said. “No one will answer my calls over there.”
Funny, but Larry Brown has the same feeling with the Knicks.
Intern extradordinaire Rex Chapman digs deep to uncover the real story behind Gilbert Arenas’ unfortunate brush with the law during Miami’s Urban Beach Week, full details available at The Daily Bacon.
