So far that’s almost $157 million in losses directly attributable to Thomas. But wait, there’s more. Thomas signed Basketball Hall of Fame coach Larry Brown to a five-year contract worth between $50 million and $60 million in 2005, but after a dismal season marked by player revolts and one of the worst win-loss records in Knicks’ history, Brown was fired the following year. Regardless, Brown was able to force the Knicks to buy out the rest of his contract—for a cool $18.5 million. (Thomas succeeded Brown as coach, while maintaining his “president” title.)

And last, but certainly not least, there was the sordid sexual-harassment suit brought against M.S.G. late last year by Anucha Browne Sanders, a former Knicks’ marketing executive. Sanders claimed that Thomas repeatedly verbally abused and sexually harassed her and that James Dolan then wrongfully dismissed her when she filed a formal complaint against M.S.G. Sanders eventually won an $11.6 million judgment (later settled down to $11.5 million) against the Garden in an ugly court case.

Thomas’ total liability?

• $137 million in luxury taxes.
   
• $19.6 million in lost gate revenue.
   
• $18.5 million to make Coach Brown go away.
   
• $11.5 million for Thomas’ treatment of Browne Sanders.

All told, $186.6 million. And this doesn’t even take into account Thomas’ own multimillion-dollar salary and the declining viewership for Knicks’ games broadcast on the MSG Network. (Inexplicably, the overall value of the team may still have grown slightly in recent years, at least according to Forbes, which estimated that the franchise was still worth a league-best $608 million in 2007, perhaps due to higher overall league revenues.)

The money drain will likely come to an end soon, as Dolan recently signed former Indiana Pacers C.E.O. Donnie Walsh to a four-year deal, an arrangement that knocks Thomas out of his front-office post. But the dismal balance sheet remains.

And what do the fans think?

“Wow!” says Art Nathan, a longtime Knicks fan who, much like an outraged shareholder, organized a well-publicized protest calling for Thomas’ ouster outside M.S.G. last December. “The guy’s a loser, but I didn’t think he cost them that much.”

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