Knicks News: Why Brock Aller accepted Knicks job despite concerns

Brock Aller was conflicted about joining the New York Knicks front office, but ultimately decided it was too good of an opportunity to pass up.

When Brock Aller was deciding whether to accept an offer to join the New York Knicks front office, he weighed the allure of being part of the group that finally turns the Knicks into contenders with the reality of joining a franchise that his most trusted basketball associates warned could be unrepairable, as his decision-making process was described by Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com.

Perhaps the most significant move of new Knicks president Leon Rose’s short tenure with the organization has been the hiring of a detail-oriented salary cap specialist. One of Rose’s first calls after being hired by the Knicks was to recruit Aller away from the Cleveland Cavaliers, a decision that weighed on Aller for several weeks before he accepted the offer.

Responsible for handling the salary cap and strategic planning in Cleveland, Aller will be a key voice in the Knicks front office that otherwise remains relatively unchanged. General manager Scott Perry will return for one more season, and influential voices, such as Allan Houston, still hold important roles.

When Aller was debating whether to accept the offer to join the Knicks, he started an extensive process of reaching out to everyone he knew, from players to agents to former staff members to business associates, in order to understand whether New York was the right spot for him, according to Cleveland.com.

The cap specialist even talked to Cavs owner Dan Gilbert who knows James Dolan through their relative roles as NBA owners.

After an extensive background investigation on the Knicks, Aller found himself conflicted, as Chris Fedor describes:

"The feedback was mixed. It ranged anywhere from the Knicks being viewed as a hopeless dumpster fire with rotten ownership to dysfunctional mess that can be cleaned up with the right people. But even as the information poured in, Aller kept going back to one thing: It’s New York. It’s the Knicks."

Of course, Aller eventually decided to make the jump to New York. The opportunity too good to pass up. But his deep background check before accepting the offer provides a hint into the way he approaches a decision. He gathers information, puts it into perspective, and pulls the trigger.

The Knicks are lucky to have Aller as a key voice next to Leon Rose. Hopefully, the challenge to turn the franchise around becomes a success story.