Off the Dribble: Knicks and Fans Honor Lee on His Return

In five years as a Knick, David Lee became an elite rebounder, a skilled scorer, an All-Star and a fan favorite. But points came more easily than victories, so when Lee was asked, upon his return, to share his best moments, he was stumped.

“That’s a great question,” he said Wednesday, before playing his first game as a visitor at Madison Square Garden. “I don’t know that I can put my finger on one. We had a couple good come-from-behind victories, last-second tip-ins, things like that.”

Like a lot of players who lived through the mayhem of the last six years in New York, Lee did not get the chance to be part of an eventual Knicks renaissance. The Knicks let him leave last summer when they decided to invest $100 million in Amar’e Stoudemire. Lee joined the Golden State Warriors in a sign-and-trade deal for $80 million.

Barton Silverman/The New York Times The former Knick David Lee was honored with a video tribute in his return to the Garden.

In a generally miserable Knicks era, Lee was one of the few bright spots, and his efforts were recognized Wednesday night. During a first-quarter timeout, the Knicks played a video packed with Lee dunks and rebounds, along with one bloody nose and many hugs with children. When it was over, the public-address announcer Mike Walczewski gave the traditional, “Once a Knick, always a Knick” introduction as fans rose for a standing ovation. Lee acknowledged them with a raised hand and a bowed head.

“I know it’s going to be an emotional night,” he said earlier in the day. “One of the greatest things that I was privileged to be a part of here is interacting with the fans. You never know, New York could all boo tonight. Stranger things have happened. But I think I should get a warm reception.”

After all the years of chaos and controversy, coach firings and feuds, Lee earned his moment.

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Off the Dribble: Knicks' Walsh to Have Surgery

8:53 p.m. | Updated
Donnie Walsh, the Knicks’ president, said he would have hip-replacement surgery next week and would return to the team as quickly as possible. Walsh, 69, has relied first on a wheelchair and then a walker since undergoing neck surgery in June to remove bone spurs.

The hip procedure, Walsh said, would allow him to walk without the use of the walker or a cane. He said he made the decision after consulting with multiple doctors.

“They both said, ‘Your legs are strong, your neck is healed, your balance is fine,’ ” Walsh said Wednesday before the Knicks played the Golden State Warriors. “When you disrupt your spinal cord and lose your bearings, you have to learn how to walk again. I’ve gotten through a lot. My legs are much stronger. I can walk down steps if I’m holding on to a wall but if I don’t have a cane or something. But if I’m walking alone and I have to dip, it throws me off balance.”

Although he will still need a cane immediately after the procedure — which is typical — Walsh said he expected to return to the team a few days after the operation, although that may be an overly optimistic timetable. He also reiterated that he had no intention of retiring any time soon.

Walsh also disclosed that he fell during the spring, before having neck surgery, while he was scouting in Europe. In 2008, Walsh had surgery to remove cancerous growths from his tongue.

Walsh is in the final season of his contract, and the Knicks have not yet picked up his option for 2011-12. Meanwhile, Isiah Thomas has increasingly spoken about his desire to return to his former job as a Knicks executive. Just last week, he told ESPN that there was not a day in the week in which he does not think about eventually replacing Walsh.

Whether the various physical challenges Walsh has recently faced will have any impact on Thomas’s chances of returning remains to be seen.

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