It seems Isiah Thomas can do know wrong in the eyes of his employers. Perhaps it's that hundred-watt smile that masks his deep-rooted deviancy. Or his soft-spoken voice and "can-do" attitude. Regardless of the reasons, under his reign the Knicks have plummeted into a downward spiral and everyone around Thomas has been blamed for or fired/traded due to their decline. Yet Thomas remains untouchable...
And his bullet proof exterior was once again tested when a former employee of MSG, Anucha Browne Sanders, recently filed a sexual harassment suit against Thomas, alleging that Thomas directed foul derogatory language towards her and then soon after told her he was in love with her (seemingly in the same breath). As expected, the trial was a media circus, shedding even more negative light upon what was once a highly coveted franchise. There were many interesting revelations, including Marbury's extramarital affair with an intern and Thomas' 'Jekyll and Hyde' persona. However, perhaps the most humorous event of the trial was when Thomas testified that he, as a black man, calling Sanders a "back bitch" was not as bad as if a white man were to call her that. Like when she heard the words she wouldn't need to take as much offense to them when she saw the skin color of the person directing them towards her. It takes a real cunning guy to play the race card when defending oneself against sexual harassment charges.
Not shockingly, the jury found Thomas guilty of sexual harassment, and awarded Sanders $11.6 million dollars in punitive damages. Isn't it odd that after all the damaging media coverage, the evidence surfacing and the witnesses coming forward that MSG didn't pull out all the stops in an attempt to curb the negative attention and settle this monstrosity? They probably could have saved themselves a few dollars. They must've devoutly believed in the manipulative capabilities of Isiah's boyish grin. I guess they figure this verdict will cost them considerably less than Thomas' past mistakes (i.e. countless trades for washed up, overpaid players). Regardless, Dolan and MSG have to shell out the big bucks, while Thomas emerged virtually unscathed and remains the H.N.I.C. on the court at MSG.
Well, if any one of the five remaining Knicks' fans (myself included) think this verdict will negatively affect team play/morale, I think we are safe. I don’t think anything could make them any worse...At least the Garden's echoing boos will now be directed towards Thomas, leading attention away from the team's poor play, for now.
And for Thomas and all the MSG Execs who now want to prove to the world that the Garden is not a hostile workplace for women. Holla. Consider this my application for the job of poster-girl for the Garden's "women-friendly" environment. My qualifications: I have experience with both bad language and unwarranted sexual advances. And for $240K a year, I will have no problem also flashing a hundred-watt smile to hide my deviancy. My resume can be made available at your request.
Rebecca is a New York based entertainment and intellectual property attorney, an agressive fantasy player and an avid Knicks and Jets fan. Got a question for Answer Gal? E-mail her at: answergal@fantasysportsupdate.com
