Knicks Rumors: Leon Rose Not Planning Changes to Front Office During NBA Hiatus

With the 2019-20 NBA season on hiatus because of the coronavirus pandemic, conflicting reports have emerged regarding New York Knicks president Leon Rose's plans for the team moving forward.

On Wednesday, Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News reported Rose is eyeing Philadelphia 76ers general manager Elton Brand as a potential candidate to replace Knicks general manager Scott Perry. However, Marc Berman of the New York Post reported Thursday that "Rose is proceeding as status quo with an inherited front office in following an unofficial NBA hiring/firing stoppage with the world stopped cold."

Berman added that Rose is continuing to prepare for the 2020 draft with scouting meetings through conference calls and video chats.

"I don't see any teams hiring or firing during this," an anonymous NBA source told Berman. "That's the sense."

Rose and other members of the Knicks organization thanked medical employees and caregivers and shared encouraging messages for fans earlier Thursday:

On March 28, the Knicks announced team owner James Dolan had tested positive for COVID-19.

As for job security in the NBA during the ongoing hiatus, the league's top executives reportedly had their base salaries reduced by 20 percent last week:

Wojnarowski also reported Tuesday that there have been discussions between the NBA and NBA Players Association about "withholding up to 25 percent of players' remaining salaries in a league escrow should regular-season games eventually be canceled."

The draft is scheduled for June 25, and the Knicks are poised to be in the lottery for the seventh straight year. Rose can't afford to botch his first draft in charge of the long-suffering and rebuilding franchise regardless of the unprecedented circumstances.

New York was 21-45 entering the hiatus, which was the fourth-worst mark in the Eastern Conference and sixth-worst in the NBA.