The Latrell Sprewell show
As much of a mess as it was, the McDyess injury wouldn’t the biggest headache the Knicks’ dealt with during the 2002- 03 preseason.
On October 4, 2002, the New York Post reported that Sprewell had broken his right pinkie while enjoying time on his yacht. He was short on details only telling the Knicks that he had, “banged his hand a couple weeks ago.” Combine the vagueness of this information with the fact that certain fractures of the pinkie are sometimes called a “boxer’s fracture” and there was no stopping the media rumor mill.
Sprewell went on to sue the Post and reporter Marc Berman for writing that according to sources, the broken finger was the result of a fight:
"Sprewell’s agent, Bob Gist, said yesterday his client’s right-pinkie fracture occurred while skippering his new yacht on the choppy waters of Lake Michigan off the Milwaukee lakefront. However, two eyewitnesses who asked not to be identified told The Post the Knicks superstar hurt his hand afterward, when, during a late-night party on his boat, he was involved in a skirmish in which he threw a punch that missed and hit a wall."
Besides the distraction of the media and lawsuit (which was later dismissed), the situation caused quite a bit of tension between Sprewell and the Knicks’ front office, specifically General Manager Scott Layden and Coach Don Chaney.
- Angry that Sprewell didn’t tell them about his injury sooner, the Knicks told him to stay away from training camp
- The Knicks fined Sprewell $250,000 for “not reporting the injury in a timely manner.”
Apparently, the issue went beyond the apparent lack of respect and professionalism Sprewell showed the Knicks’ front-office and his teammates by not reporting the injury immediately. Had Layden known about the injury sooner, he may not have passed on signing Lee Nailon who Layden was a fan of.
This wasn’t the first time Sprewell had made headlines for causing issues within his team.
- 1993 – got into a fight with teammate Byron Houston during practice.
- 1995 – got into a fight with teammate Jerome Kersey during practice. Sprewell was removed and later returned with a two-by-four and while being forcibly removed for the second time, would threaten to come back with a gun
- 1997 – was fined and suspended for chocking Warriors’ Head Coach P. J. Carlesimo in practice
And that’s just the big stuff. Sprewell filed an appeal over the disciplinary action following the choking incident with Carlesimo claiming that since he didn’t have a history of inappropriate behavior, the 82 game suspension was too much. Sprewell definitely has a different concept of what it means to have a history than I do.
Little did Sprewell know, the Warriors had been keeping track. Two team executives who requested to remain anonymous came forward with a file outlining a history of Sprewell’s bad behavior over several years. The list of over 20 offenses ranged from chronic tardiness resulting in missed planes and busses to requests for special treatment to the outright violence outlined above.
In fairness, Sprewell had done a better job of keeping his head down with the Knicks. I mean, at least there weren’t any physical altercations or death threats with his teammates or coaches. But Sprewell reportedly continued his bad habit of showing up late for practices.
Obviously, his consistently being late was more than a minor annoyance to the Knicks’ coaching staff. If nothing else, it would have undermined the coaches’ authority with the rest of the team. But Sprewell was productive on the court and a favorite of Knicks fans who’d had very little to be excited about in recent seasons.
The drama at the beginning of the 2002- 03 season, gave the New York front-office the ammo they needed to move him and Sprewell was traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves the following offseason.
Sprewell would eventually turn down a three-year deal worth $21 million offered by the Timberwolves making the 2004- 05 season the last of his NBA career as no one was interested in signing the solidly performing star who was always seemed to be at the center of some level of chaos. Just 3 years later in 2008, his house was up for foreclosure and he was forced to sell his yacht.
The Sprewell trade brought Keith Van Horn to the Knicks’ roster. While Van Horn averaged a solid 16.4 points in his 47 games with the Knicks, he would be an early casualty of the New York Knicks’ Isiah Thomas era.