Isiah Thomas believes that he can win with the same roster that won only 23 games with hall of famer Larry Brown at the helm this season, according to the New York Daily News.

"I do like our players and my job is to get their confidence back and I think they can play at a higher level than what a lot of them performed at last year," Thomas said yesterday.

"I'm very comfortable with our roster. I'm comfortable with the things that we have. I'll continue to look to get better. But if we had to go into the season right now with what we have and the way we look, I'm comfortable with that."

Thomas warned Knick fans not to expect Kevin Garnett or Jermaine O'Neal to be on their way to the big apple this offseason, saying "I'm not here waiting for Santa Claus to come save us."

Former Knicks coach Larry Brown filed a grievance with the NBA against the team, saying New York owes him the remainder of his salary after firing him, according to published reports Thursday.

Brown, who says the Knicks should pay him $40 million, filed the grievance Wednesday, the New York Daily News and New York Post reported. The Knicks, who fired the coach after one season, claim they're not obligated to pay the full amount because Brown violated terms of his contract.

According to Joe Glass, agent for Larry Brown, lawyers for the fired Knicks' coach have filed paperwork yesterday to make their appeal. David Stern will act as arbitrator and fully intends to decide the case.

"Commissioner Stern has agreed to accept jurisdiction over any dispute that may arise under the employment contract," said Tim Frank, the N.B.A.'s vice president for basketball communications.

Isiah Thomas knows that he has just one year to turn things around with the Knicks, but he isn't going to let that affect the way he drafts.

But Thomas said, "I'm not going to be shortsighted, even though there is pressure on me to do big things here. I won't shortchange the Knicks' organization and do something hasty."

Shawne Williams, Hilton Armstrong, Josh Boone and Marcus Vinicius are all possibilities for New York.

"A lot of teams above us are talking trades and really haven't settled on the direction they want to go," Thomas said. "When you're sitting at 20 and 29, you're basically trying to catch what falls to you."

After finally addressing the press, Knicks owner James Dolan revealed that working with Brown in the future would be unachievable after Brown made questionable demands.

The most questionable had Brown request that the team waive Stephon Marbury, Steve Francis, Jerome James, Jalen Rose and Maurice Taylor - a move that would have cost the Knicks roughly $150 million in salary.

Late last season, Brown admitted that he had lost the faith of many of his players.

Dolan claimed that Brown focused too much on trying to be the GM of the team and not enough on coaching them.

James Dolan, Isiah Thomas and Steve Mills had a meeting with six Knicks beat writers and The Associated Press on Monday afternoon.

"It's my contention Larry never intended to coach this team beyond this season," Dolan said Monday. Holding one hand about 18 inches above a conference table, Dolan added, "If there's any doubt about that, there's a stack of evidence that high."

Isiah Thomas has one year to turn around the Knicks, something Larry Brown couldn't do. And if Thomas doesn't, he'll be gone, too.

"This is his team; he made this bed," Dolan said of Thomas. "There's no one better than him to make this go forward. If I can say there has been significant progress after one year, he'll be here. If we can't say that, he will not be here."

Garden chairman James Dolan is scheduled to address Knicks beat reporters this afternoon for the first time since Larry Brown was fired on Thursday, the New York Daily News is reporting.

Dolan fired Brown with four years and $40 million remaining on his contract. The Knicks are trying to get out of paying Brown that money. NBA commissioner David Stern, as per a clause in Brown's contract, will serve as an arbitrator in the financial dispute.

Larry Brown used a record 42 different starting line-ups and would make a point to start certain players in their hometowns, making the front office believe that the coach was purposefully tanking the season.

Brown and Isiah Thomas also thought that the club should play different styles.

"Isiah wanted Larry to play like the Phoenix Suns," one source said. "Larry told Isiah that maybe he should coach the team."

The Knicks' front office also believed that Larry Brown was playing Jackie Butler ahead of Jerome James because Butler is represented by Keith Glass, the son of Brown's agent, Joel Glass.

According to Mitch Lawrence, Isiah Thomas is attempting to deal away Quentin Richardson.

Richardson was dealt to the Knicks for Kurt Thomas last June in a trade first reported by RealGM.

Perhaps no other player will benefit more from the firing of Larry Brown more than Nate Robinson.

There was no other player that Brown and Isiah Thomas viewed differently than Robinson.

"I know Nate's workout dazzled them," Robinson's college coach, Lorenzo Romar said of the Knicks. "At that point, it was my understanding Isiah said, 'We've got to get him.'

"You don't put a tuxedo on Nate. It's like putting a tuxedo on someone at the beach. You feel like you just can't do anything. With Nate, you've got to get him out of the tuxedo and put him in some shorts and flip-flops and just let him enjoy the beach within certain parameters. If not, he gets frustrated."