PHILADELPHIA – Superagent David Falk couldn’t hide his disappointment the Knicks failed yet again to land his client Dikembe Mutombo.
While Falk thinks Mutombo will be a nice fit across the river in Jersey, he’s baffled Knicks GM Scott Layden didn’t pull the trigger to obtain the center he’s pursued since he traded Patrick Ewing two years ago.
Falk, who is also Keith Van Horn’s agent and was on hand yesterday for his introductory press conference at First Union Center, believes Mutombo would have been the perfect complement to power forward Antonio McDyess. They were teammates for two seasons in Denver in the mid-1990’s.
The Post reported Wednesday the Knicks and Sixers engaged in trade talks about Mutombo, but Philly wasn’t interested in Latrell Sprewell or Allan Houston, wanting a center in return. A league source confirmed yesterday’s published report that the Sixers and Knicks had been close to a deal that collapsed because Layden wouldn’t part with Kurt Thomas.
Last Friday, the source said, a trade was proposed in which the Knicks gained Mutombo and gave up Thomas, Charlie Ward and Travis Knight. On Monday, Layden called the Sixers, backing out of the deal. That’s when the Sixers called the Nets.
Sixers GM Billy King, asked about the crashed deal, said “I’m not going down that road.”
Layden wouldn’t comment either, but the club disputed the contention that a serious offer had been on the table. Evidently, Layden was leery of Mutombo’s age and the fact that, in two years, the Knicks could have been saddled with four players – Sprewell, Houston, McDyess and Mutombo – signed to maximum contracts, further reducing his flexibility.
“It would’ve been interesting if Dikembe went back to New York now that they have McDyess because they played together in Denver,” Falk said. “It would’ve been a helluva frontline. I guess there was a deal on the table – for whatever reason it wasn’t consummated. I know Scott loves Dikembe.”
The Knicks have talked to the Heat about another Falk client, center Alonzo Mourning, but the agent doubts he’ll be traded this summer. Miami would like to clear cap space to make room for the star-studded 2003 free-agent crop, but can wait until the February trading deadline to do it. Because the Knicks have no players who are starting the final year of a contract, they would need to involve a third team to make something happen with Miami.
“Alonzo’s making 20 million,” Falk said. “It’s tough to move $20 million guys. My guess is they’ll stay put one more year and evaluate the whole team at the end of the year.”
Falk said the 36-year-old Mutombo, who has never suffered a serious injury, could play as many another six or seven seasons, although the Nets will probably have to cut back his minutes by about 10 to 15 percent. “I don’t look at the college ranks and see a lot of Mutombos in the wings coming out of school. I think he’s going to be a premier player for a number of years.