NBA Commissioner David Stern to settle Brown’s Contract Dispute

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NBA Commissioner David Stern to settle Brown’s Contract Dispute

Larry Brown is getting his contract’s dispute following his firing by the New York Knicks before NBA commissioner David Stern on Friday. League officials said this is the first instance of Stern serving as an arbitrator between a team and one of its former employees. Stern is not expected to rule for up to two weeks. Neither the NBA nor the Knicks would comment on the arbitration hearing held at the league office.

Brown presided over a tumultuous 23-win season and was fired last June, on the 22nd. He claimed that the Knicks are attempting to avoid paying the remaining four years on his contract, worth about $40 million. Brown says that he should be paid the $40 million plus $12 million in legal fees and damages. Brown's contract designated Stern as the arbitrator in any financial dispute with the Knicks.

According to Madison Square Garden chairman James Dolan, Brown was fired for violating terms of his contract. Dolan contends that Brown was trying to make unauthorized trades and criticizing players in the media at the time of his tenure.

Isiah Thomas, the Knicks coach and general manager, was the one who hired Brown in the summer of 2005. It was celebrated as a great move that was supposed to revive a team that has not won an NBA championship since 1973. Instead, the Knicks finished 23-59, the second-worst record in the NBA, and matched the most losses in club history.

Brown was very critical of his players and publicly feuded with star guard Stephon Marbury. Since these events, Brown has been considered acting against team’s best interest, thus leading to his recent firing as the president of the Knicks.