Scott Perry, the incoming general manager, has the qualifications to be the best player personnel executive in recent New York Knicks history.
The New York Knicks have made countless mistakes in installing someone to lead their player personnel department. Scott Perry promises not to be the next, though.
When the team finalizes trade compensation, Perry will become the next general manger of the Knicks. The team is inking him to a five-year deal, which will bring some stability to the position.
According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, Perry will not receive final authority—that will fall to new president Steve Mills.
"Mills will still retain ultimate authority in the front office, but Perry will be given freedom to operate as he chooses, league sources said. He will be the day-to-day voice running the basketball side."
But he will have autonomy on the basketball side of things, which is where it counts for most fans.
The awful decision-making of Phil Jackson has been dissected time and again. In his brief run making basketball decisions, Mills may have been even worse, signing Tim Hardaway Jr. and Ron Baker to questionable contracts while further clouding the Carmelo Anthony trade picture.
With the team trying to take a more youthful approach to player personnel decisions, Perry fits in perfectly. As the No. 2 man with the Orlando Magic for the past several years, he helped draft the likes of Victor Oladipo, Aaron Gordon, and Elfrid Payton.
Scott Perry is an experienced executive with connections. Also was in Orlando front office when they drafted Elfrid Payton & Mario Hezonja.
— Frank Isola (@TheFrankIsola) July 13, 2017
Perry was only the No. 2 man for the Sacramento Kings for roughly three months, but he was responsible for one of the best performances at the 2017 NBA Draft.
Young talent with potential now fills Sacramento’s roster. So do mentoring veterans who can improve the team’s culture without costing a fortune.
Many around the league credit Scott Perry's influence w/ has been viewed as a successful offseason w/ clarity and direction.
— Jason Jones (@mr_jasonjones) July 13, 2017
New York has a young core in place, led by Kristaps Porzingis. Willy Hernangomez had a great rookie season, and Frank Ntilikina was a top pick in this year’s draft. If the addition of Hardaway Jr. pays off, much of the hard work for Perry will already be in the past.
His main responsibilities for the rest of the summer will be to orchestra a trade of Anthony, find a bargain point guard to mentor Ntilikina, and return a sense of calm to the organization.
For the first time in several years, however, it appears the Knicks have made a strong front office hire.
Must Read: Five reasons to love the Scott Perry hiring
Scott Perry will now look to lead the New York Knicks back to the playoffs.