David Stern admitted fault with the confusion over the return of Isiah Thomas to the Knicks as a consultant.
James Dolan briefed Stern before making the hire official.
"It's fair to say I missed the issue,'' Stern said. "I told them they can do it. And when it was announced, my guy said it's not allowed. I blew that one pretty good.
"It didn't comply with our rules and ultimately wouldn't have complied with NCAA rules.?