One morning in late January, about a week before the Knicks fired team president Steve Mills, Leon Rose received a call from James Dolan. At the time, Rose, who has a long history with the Knicks, was still a high-powered NBA agent, co-running the basketball division at Creative Artists Agency. He represented Carmelo Anthony when the star was the alpha and omega in New York, and his list of brand-name clients was long.
Dolan asked Rose if he would be open to talk about a job running the Knicks. The organization was floundering, on its way to a seventh consecutive losing season, and navigating one mess after another. Before Rose committed to a meeting, he went to CAA Sports’ Manhattan office and discussed the call with Michael Levine, a co-head of the agency. They agreed Rose should hear out the Knicks owner. If nothing else, a sitdown with Dolan would tell Rose just how serious the offer was. Rose left immediately for Madison Square Garden.
He returned to…
