Admit it. There was something a little bit exciting about the Isiah Thomas era. When the gears were turning and GM's were talking, deals went down hastily and without warning. Think back to the Stephon Marbury deal. I don't think anyone saw that coming until the last minute. Same with the Zach Randolph trade. Isiah's incomptence and lack of planning or foresight made for abrupt and monumental jolts to the organization. Rumors flew around wildly, largely because Isiah seemed to entertain just about every offer he received.
This first summer under Donnie Walsh has proven that things have changed. No, Mr. Walsh has been around far too long and made too much of a reputation for himself to pull the trigger on just anything. Like a stalking cat, he'll wait for just the right opportunity to attack his prey (in this case, the wild McHales, Baylors, and other helpless creatures of the Serengeti). This is almost definitely for the better of the Knicks, but hurts that little part of every Knick fan's brain that thirts for loose, rampant rumors (call it the Berman Gyrus). It all comes down to patience. As HoopsWorld notes, we can look forward to cautious, calculated dealing on the part of Walsh:
What's important to remember is that Knicks General Manager Donnie Walsh is an extremely patient man. When he was running the Indiana Pacers he waited a very long time to finally move forward Ron Artest. After negotiations with many, many teams - Walsh would ultimately land his top choice in Sacramento Kings forward Peja Stojakovic (now with the New Orleans Hornets).
After moving forward Al Harrington to the Atlanta Hawks for Stephen Jackson, Walsh would later re-trade for Harrington after another slow-play. The Hawks weren't willing to take back salary and the Pacers were one of the few teams with a trade exception. Of course that exception was created when Walsh got the Hornets to sign and trade for Stojakovic - rather than ink him outright.
The point is - Walsh is smart, creative and patient. He doesn't bow to public pressure and waits until he gets his way. If a trade gets done with the Grizzlies, it'll be on his timeline.
It'll take some getting used to for certain. We're accustomed to that same public pressure eating away at the logic and inhibition of our general manager. If Walsh is true to form, we'll have to sit tight, take rumors as they come, and be very, very, very patient. This applies to the currently "dormant" Randolph deal and all others in the future. That's just how the man works.
The good news? I don't have to spend months out of every year tugging my hair out at the prospect of Vince Carter in orange and blue. We're in good hands.