Donnie Walsh preferred Deron Williams?

In The New York Times on Tuesday, columnist Harvey Araton quotes Donnie Walsh on the topic of the thrilling playoffs.

Then -- like a big blooming dandelion in the middle of your pristine lawn -- comes this line:

Walsh is too much of a loyal organization man to admit he would have preferred to chase a Deron Williams, a Chris Paul, before expending the enormous resources he did on Carmelo Anthony at the behest of his owner, James L. Dolan.

We know that Walsh didn't pursue Williams, and didn't know he was available. But Sam Amick talked to all the front offices involved last month on his NBA Confidential blog, and writes:

While Walsh is certainly thrilled to land Anthony, he admitted the notion of landing Williams would have been appealing had he known he was on the market.

Asked if things might have turned out differently if he was privy to that information, Walsh said with a shrug when asked by NBA Confidential, “it might have.”

None of it really matters now. But the narrative the Knicks have been spinning is that there could have been no better outcome than to land Anthony. And that story persists, despite hints from the guy who runs the team that perhaps the Nets got the better deal.

Source: http://espn.go.com/blog/truehoop/post/_/id/27719/donnie-walsh-preferred-deron-williams

Rudolf Krause Joe Nemechek Washington Scott Alan Wimmer Hermann Lang Los Angeles Clippers Rasheed Wallace