New York Knicks Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Knicks Hire Derek Fisher As Coach

June 10th, 2014 at 10:36am CST by Zachary Links

The Knicks have hired Derek Fisher as head coach, the team announced. The 39-year-old, who retires from his 18-year playing career to take the gig, is taking a five-year, $25MM deal, the same terms that New York’s first choice for coach, Steve Kerr, signed for when he spurned the Knicks for the Warriors. Fisher will likely hire Bill Cartwright and Lakers assistant coach Kurt Rambis for his staff.

NBA: Playoffs-New Orleans Hornets at Los Angeles Lakers

“Today marks the next step of this journey for the New York Knicks franchise as we name Derek to lead the team as its head coach.” Knicks president Phil Jackson said. “Our relationship began 15 years ago, and over time, it has come clear to me that he and I can form a great partnership once again.”

Fisher has been considered the front-runner for the Knicks’ job for a few weeks now but nothing could be safely assumed after Jackson & Co. whiffed on Kerr. Kerr seemed like a lock to take the position earlier this offseason but he shocked everyone by accepting a five-year, $25MM offer from the Warriors instead.

In Fisher, Jackson has landed another former pupil without any coaching experience. That lack of experience, strangely enough, is part of what appealed to Jackson. The Zen Master has been looking for a young, malleable coach who will be open to his instruction since an NBA retread would be less open to doing things Jackson’s way. It has been widely speculated that Jackson would instruct whatever coach he hired to run his beloved triangle offense.

Knicks star Carmelo Anthony, who is a free agent this summer, was said to be in favor of the club hiring Kerr as its head coach. It remains to be seen how Melo feels about Fisher and whether he’ll be enough to convince him to sign a new deal or opt in for his final season. If Anthony opts in, he’ll earn $23.333MM next year, which would mean more money in the short term. That might not be a risk that he wants to take after recently celebrating the big 3-0, however. If Carmelo wants a big, cushy deal with another club, this summer is probably his best opportunity.

It’s certainly conceivable that the likable Fisher could appeal to Melo and maybe other free agents down the line. Fisher has a very strong bond with Thunder star Kevin Durant, who becomes a free agent in the summer of 2016. Of course, that’s not the key consideration for the Knicks at this juncture, but it’s certainly something to keep in mind. Fisher was also linked to the Lakers’ vacancy, though in recent weeks it started to sound as though they weren’t all that interested.

The deal demonstrates the quickly escalating value of first-time coaches. Jason Kidd was elated to land the Nets’ job this time last year, but he might be feeling a little shortchanged now. Kerr and Fisher have each netted $25MM contracts but Kidd signed with Brooklyn for $10.5MM over four years.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. Chuck Myron contributed to this post. Frank Isola of the New York Daily News was the first to report that Fisher and the Knicks were nearing agreement (via Twitter) and that they had struck a deal. Isola’s report on the agreement also includes the news that Cartwright and Rambis would likely join the Knicks as assistant coaches under Fisher. Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reported the contract terms (on Twitter). Bleacher Reports’ Howard Beck provided additional detail (Twitter links).

Atlantic Notes: Fisher, Odom, Celtics, Stackhouse

June 9th, 2014 at 9:59am CST by Zachary Links

The Knicks are set to ramp up their pursuit of Derek Fisher this week, sources tell Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Stein hears that the Knicks are approaching the situation with some level of trepidation since Steve Kerr unraveled after he appeared to be a slam dunk. Here’s more out of the Atlantic..

Lamar Odom, who has a non-guaranteed deal with the Knicks for 2014/15, is expected to join the club at their practice facility by the end of the month, a source with knowledge of the veteran forward’s plans told Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com. The 34-year-old signed with the Knicks on the final day of the regular season.
Celtics director of player personnel Austin Ainge indicated the team could trade back into the second round in what is expected to be a deep draft, writes Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe. The C’s gave their second-round pick (No. 34) to the Mavs last year to jump up three spots and grab Kelly Olynyk in the first round. The 76ers, meanwhile, have five second round choices in this year’s draft.
Jerry Stackhouse is pushing for a job within the Knicks organization, writes Brett Pollakoff of Pro Basketball Talk. “It’s a possibility,” Stackhouse told reporters at the Adidas Eurocamp. “I think [Jackson] is still figuring it out. He doesn’t know who the head coach is going to be, but I think after that is settled, there could be some realistic possibilities.” Stackhouse, who has been coaching at the AAU level for five years, wants to ultimately become a head coach, but he’s willing to start out as an assistant to move towards that goal.
Kevin O’Connor of WEEI.com looks at UCLA power forward Kyle Anderson and how he could be a potential fit for the Celtics. Because C’s coach Brad Stevens likes his offense to move the ball and shoot it from deep, Anderson would be a natural fit right from the get go.

Eastern Notes: Pistons, Hornets, Dolan, Celtics

June 8th, 2014 at 8:50am CST by Eddie Scarito

The Pistons have big plans for their new NBA D-League team in Grand Rapids, writes David Mayo of MLive. Coach and president of basketball operations, Stan Van Gundy intends to use the D-League as a major part of their development plan for young players, reports Mayo. Van Gundy said, “If you get that coach integrated with what you’re doing, and you’re playing the same system and everything else, I think that D-League thing can be very, very valuable. And we’ll take the hiring of that coach as a very big part of our staff because I think it can be that valuable.“

More news from the east:

If the Hornets don’t want to regress next season they will have to add some offensive weapons to their roster, writes Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer.
Knicks owner James Dolan needs to observe how Heat owner Micky Arison and Spurs owner Peter Holt do business, writes Mitch Lawrence of The New York Daily News. Lawrence cites Dolan’s tendency to meddle in basketball affairs as one of the main issues affecting the franchise’s ability to rebuild and contend.
If the Celtics want to acquire Kevin Love from the Timberwolves the possibility of re-signing him will be directly tied to what GM Danny Ainge decides to do with Rajon Rondo, writes Mark Murphy of The Boston Herald. Without Love the team has less of a reason to retain Rondo, and without Rondo the team would be less likely to entice Love to stay in Boston, opines Murphy.

Atlantic Notes: Cartwright, Walton, Sixers

June 7th, 2014 at 8:41pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Bill Cartwright is waiting to hear from either Phil Jackson or Steve Kerr about an assistant coaching position, writes Mitch Abramson of The New York Daily News. According to the article, Cartwright had met with Jackson back in April about joining the Knicks bench if Kerr was hired as coach. On his lack of recent contact with Jackson, Cartwright said, “We’re waiting for them to make a decision, obviously about the head coach and there’s nothing going on.” On possibly working as an assistant under Derek Fisher, Cartwright said, “That’s a Phil question, not my question. I’m looking to coach. There’s really nothing more to say, outside of that. I’m looking to coach.”

Eastern Rumors: Seraphin, Knicks

June 7th, 2014 at 12:36pm CST by Cray Allred

Kevin Seraphin tells Brandon Parker of The Washington Post he would “for sure” like to re-sign with the Wizards, but wants an opportunity to play more. “I love this game so if I don’t play I’m frustrated,” Seraphin said. The power forward took a step back in his fourth season, with his minutes and production nearly cut in half across the board. Seraphin will either become a restricted or unrestricted free agent, depending on whether Washington extends his $3.9MM qualifying offer. Here’s more from around the Eastern Conference:

Phil Jackson explained to Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com why he is committed to finding a Knicks coach with which he is familiar. “I’d like to have a prior relationship with a coach so that we know that we’ve gone through some kind of issues together,” said Jackson. “We’ve had conflicts, we’ve had disagreements and we know how to work things out. Those, I think, are part and parcel I think to having a relationship with people that can work together that can still disagree and come to terms.”
Jackson revealed that there are college coaches that intrigue him for the job, and confirmed that he sees a benefit in hiring a younger coach for the position. Jackson said he is looking for a coach to last for the long-term, not just as a one or two year stop gap.
We learned earlier today that the Cavs plan to offer Kyrie Irving a max extension this summer.

Lakers Won’t Pursue Derek Fisher

June 7th, 2014 at 8:25am CST by Cray Allred

The Lakers have decided they need a head coach with previous experience leading an NBA team, ending Derek Fisher‘s candidacy for their vacancy, reports Mike Bresnahan of The Los Angeles Times. L.A. was interested in Fisher, the Knicks’ front-runner at the moment, but has opted against exploring a repeat of Jason Kidd‘s immediate transition from player to head coach with the Nets last season. It is unclear if Los Angeles ever reached out to Fisher as planned, or if this decision was made before such contact could be made. The Lakers’ narrowed focus on experience also eliminates any college coaches as potential candidates, Bresnahan writes.

Fisher has yet to officially announce his retirement, but Phil Jackson has spoken with the veteran point guard about the job. Jackson received permission from the Thunder to contact Fisher after getting dinged for tampering by making public comments regarding the player still under contract in Oklahoma City. If Fisher does decide to join the coaching ranks, the Knicks appear to be the most serious contender for his services. The possibility of Fisher playing another year in Oklahoma City to function as an informal assistant coach has been raised, but such a scenario doesn’t seem likely by any current reports.

Although Fisher was largely expected to end up with the Knicks anyway, this should come as welcome news to Jackson. Steve Kerr was Jackson’s first choice to come lead the team under the Zen Master’s authority and tutelage, but made the surprising choice to accept Golden State’s job offer instead. Jackson reportedly wants to reach an agreement with Fisher very soon, although Fisher has maintained publicly that he doesn’t want to rush to a decision so soon after what was presumably his last season as a player.

And-Ones: Gay, Sterling, Shumpert

June 6th, 2014 at 10:34pm CST by Cray Allred

Keyboard warriors around the world took to Twitter last night to criticize Heat star LeBron James for exiting Game 1 of the Finals with leg cramps. After the game, Hall of Famer Isiah Thomas spoke with Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports and came to LeBron’s defense. “There is no athlete on the planet who could’ve played through those cramps,” Thomas said. “Michael Jordan absolutely couldn’t have played through those cramps. I absolutely couldn’t have played through those cramps. As an athlete, there’s nothing you could do.” More from around the league:

The Kings are bringing in Chris Mullin and Mitch Richmond to help team leadership try and convince Rudy Gay to pick up his $19.3MM option for next season, sources tell Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports. Sacramento has already made known a desire to keep Gay, and is hoping to leverage the reputation of their former players with excitement about their future arena in persuading Gay to remain with the team that traded for him in-season.
Donald Sterling is having second thoughts about giving up his battle with the league because he had wrongly assumed a truce with the league would entail his lifetime ban being lifted, people familiar with the situation tell James Rainey and Mike Bresnahan of The Los Angeles Times.
Marc Berman of The New York Post thinks it’s likely the Knicks will want to revisit the talks with the Thunder that centered around Iman Shumpert this past trade deadline. Berman cites the New York’s desire to acquire a first round draft pick, and Oklahoma City’s willingness to trade away either of its two first round selections.

Zach Links contributed to this post.

Draft Notes: Hood, Stokes, Jackson, Anderson

June 6th, 2014 at 9:42pm CST by Zachary Links

This morning, Hoops Rumors learned (Twitter link) that Duke sharpshooter Rodney Hood will audition for the Celtics, Kings, Hawks, and Hornets in the next few weeks. As previously reported, his future workout schedule will also include the Sixers and he has already worked out for the Bulls, Magic, Nuggets, and Suns. Back in May, Hood told Hoops Rumors that he could go as high as No. 6-12 and it sounds increasingly plausible as he has worked out for most of the top half teams. Here’s the latest draft news..

Nate Duncan of Basketball Insiders explains why he thinks Noah Vonleh would have limited upside as a lottery pick. Duncan thinks Vonleh’s leaping ability has become overrated, and cites poor instincts on both ends of the floor as reason to temper expectations.
Robby Kalland of Hawks.com checked in with Brian Schroeder of Hardwood Paroxysm to get the goods on first round draft prospect Jusuf Nurkic. Schroeder raves about his size, relative mobility, rebounding, and scoring touch. Currently, the big man is slated to go No. 11 to the Nuggets in DraftExpress‘ mock draft.
Joel Brigham of Basketball Insiders runs down some common mistakes teams make in the draft, highlighting players from this year’s pool that could produce similar letdowns.

Earlier updates:

Jabari Parker would have no issue with being drafted by the Bucks, his father Sonny and Duke teammate Hood tell Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times.
The Suns were expected to work out Adreian Payne, Jordan Adams, Markel Brown, Sean Kilpatrick, Daniel Miller, and C.J. Wilcox today, reports azcentral sports.
Shawn Glover worked out for the Jazz today, reports Aaron Falk of The Salt Lake Tribune, and both Payne and David Stockton will work out for Utah tomorrow, Falk tweets. Payne is projected near Utah’s No. 23 overall pick, but neither Glover or Stockton (son of Jazz legend John Stockton) are projected as either first or second round picks.
A source tells Hoops Rumors (Twitter link) that Clemson small forward K.J. McDaniels will work out for the Thunder tomorrow. McDaniels is projected as a mid-to-late first-round pick and while he figures to be in range, he could be gone by the time OKC picks at No. 21.
Hoops Rumors has also learned (via Twitter) that Stanford forward Josh Huestis auditioned for the Knicks this week and will be playing in front of the Magic today. The source adds that there aren’t enough days before the draft for Huestis to work out for every team that wants to see him (link).
In continuing their trend of working out point guards, the Magic will work out Tyler Ennis and Elfrid Payton over the next few days, tweets Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders.
Hoops Rumors has also learned (via Twitter) that former Tennessee Volunteers big man Jarnell Stokes is one of the 12 players working out for the Jazz today. Stokes is projected to be a first round pick thanks to his tenacious rebounding and high motor.
A source tells Hoops Rumors (via Twitter) that Cincinnati forward Justin Jackson has worked out for the Bulls with the Mavs, Pacers, Hawks, Hornets, and Suns still on the docket. To learn more about Jackson, a second-round prospect, check out the interview we conducted with him last month as a part of our Prospect Profile series.
Former UCLA point guard Kyle Anderson will work out for the Thunder tomorrow and the Sixers on Monday, tweets Adam Zagoria of SNY.

Coaching Rumors: Jazz, Fisher, Cavs, Lakers

June 6th, 2014 at 5:27pm CST by Cray Allred

It’ll be a long time, if ever, before we see Coach Cal back in the NBA. John Calipari‘s new contract with the University of Kentucky, which takes him through 2021, doesn’t have a buyout, a source tells Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv (on Twitter). Calipari coached the Nets to a 72-112 record over three seasons in the late 90s but has found himself linked to several high-profile jobs thanks to his success at UK. Here’s more from the coaching front:

Brad Jones will be hired as an assistant on Quin Snyder‘s coaching staff for the Jazz, tweets Tony Jones of The Salt Lake Tribune. Jones’ hiring was expected when news of Snyder landing the job surfaced earlier today.
While Alex Jensen is set to move up as an assistant with Snyder, Jody Genessy of Deseret News is hearing that other teams might make a play to hire Jensen away from the Jazz (Twitter link).
Right now, it seems like Knicks president Phil Jackson is only interested in coaching candidates who come from his inner circle, writes Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com. Steve Kerr, of course, was Phil’s first choice and the current presumed frontrunner, Derek Fisher, has a long history with the Zen Master.
The Knicks hope to secure Fisher for head coaching duties next week, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.com.
Stein adds that the Cavs are likely to make the next coaching hire after the Knicks, and that the Lakers are still “in no rush” to fill their vacancy.
Jesse Blancarte of Basketball Insiders runs down the Lakers coaching candidates and attempts to identify the best fit for the job. Byron Scott and Lionel Hollins, in his view, should be considered strong candidates.
Jeff Van Gundy told KFAN 1003 that while he would have “loved to work for [Flip Saunders]” and live and coach in Minnesota, he couldn’t get past the idea that Saunders was the best coach for the Wolves, according to the T’Wolves PR Twitter account.

Zach Links contributed to this post.

New York Notes: Teletovic, Liggins, Knicks

June 6th, 2014 at 2:46pm CST by Zachary Links

Yesterday we heard that Knicks president Phil Jackson sought and obtained permission from the Thunder to interview Derek Fisher this week. It doesn’t sound as though talks have gotten serious yet, but it’s seems like a safe assumption that they will. At this stage, all signs point to Fisher being Jackson’s top choice. Here’s the latest out of NYC on a beautiful 77 degree day..

Tim Bontemps of the New York Post looks back at the season that Mirza Teletovic had after signing with the Nets as an unknown free agent two summers ago. Teletovic struggled mightily in the early goings but found his groove when the Nets switched to a smallball lineup. Now, the forward could wind up in Brooklyn’s starting lineup if the club loses Paul Pierce in free agency.
Former Kentucky big man DeAndre Liggins is working out for the Nets and seeking a second chance in the NBA, writes Lenn Robbins of BrooklynNets.com. Liggins allegedly struck his girlfriend in August of 2013, prompting the Thunder to waive him less than a week later. “I got into one off the court issue. On the court, I was always on time, always first on the bus. The whole year I was with OKC, off the court, no complaints. On the court, I played hard,” the 26-year-old said.
With the Clippers selling for $2 billion, it’s only natural to wonder how much the Knicks might be worth. Rich Tullo, an analyst at Albert Fried & Company, tells ESPN.com’s Darren Rovell that the Knicks are worth between $1.4 and $3 billion. Some Knicks fans might welcome a change in ownership, but there’s no indication that they’ll be on the market anytime soon.