PHILADELPHIA – Anucha Browne Sanders, the former Knicks marketing director suing Isiah Thomas for sexual harassment, was portrayed as a “bully” who once chewed out ex-Knick Clarence Weatherspoon for being overweight and allowing Knicks legend Willis Reed to wait 30 minutes for her in the Garden office’s lobby, The Post has learned from interviews with four Garden employees.
The alleged Weatherspoon episode occurred during a West Coast trip three years ago in the fitness room of the team hotel. Weatherspoon was said to be riding an exercise bike when Sanders came in and started berating him. According to Sanders’ for mer co-worker, she yelled, “You’re overweight. You’re not working hard enough. You’re not play ing hard enough. You could do better. What’s wrong with you?”
Weatherspoon, the source said, took the reprimand in silence. Later, however, the burly forward complained to Garden president Steve Mills about the episode, the co-worker said.
Sanders’ attorney, Kevin Mitzer, declined comment when reached last night.
Sanders was fired 10 days ago. The Garden said in a statement that she was fired for not meeting up to her “responsibilities.”
Another Garden employee claimed Sanders had rubbed some Knicks alumni the wrong way. The Garden employee said she once set up a meeting with Reed in which she left him waiting for 30 minutes. “You don’t keep Willis waiting for half an hour,” the employee said.
Still another Garden staffer claimed Sanders was being disingenuous in an interview with The Post’s Andrea Peyser, in which Sanders said Thomas’ harassment led her to tears.
“I’ve personally seen four of her former employees that she’s brought to tears on stuff like a meeting gone bad,” the third source said. “She was a bully.”
In her lawsuit, Sanders said Stephon Marbury bad-mouthed her by saying, “She thinks she runs the Knicks, but she didn’t run [bleep].”
Knicks staffers, according to sources, found it unusual she sat next to former GM Scott Layden in the “war room” on Draft Night. Sanders used to periodically travel on the road with the club, but Thomas put a stop to it when he came aboard.