Knicks Interview Mike Brown, Aim To Hire New Coach Soon
The Knicks have completed their interviews for their head coaching vacancy, and will huddle this week to attempt to reach a consensus on Jeff Hornacek‘s replacement, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. According to Woj, the club hopes to have a new head coach hired by the end of the week.
As Wojnarowski details, the Knicks conducted one final interview in addition to the meetings that have already been reported, speaking to Warriors assistant Mike Brown about their head coaching position. That brings New York’s list of reported candidates to 11 names. They are as follows, in alphabetical order:
- David Blatt (former Cavaliers head coach)
- James Borrego (Spurs assistant)
- Mike Brown (Warriors assistant; former Cavaliers head coach)
- Mike Budenholzer (former Hawks head coach)
- David Fizdale (former Grizzlies head coach)
- Juwan Howard (Heat assistant)
- Mark Jackson (ESPN analyst; former Warriors head coach)
- Jay Larranaga (Celtics assistant)
- Kenny Smith (TNT analyst)
- Jerry Stackhouse (Raptors 905 head coach)
- Mike Woodson (Clippers assistant; former Knicks head coach)
Budenholzer and Blatt have generated the most buzz as potential targets for the Knicks, while Fizdale, Stackhouse, and Jackson were initially considered among the club’s top tier as well.
If the Knicks do name a new head coach this week, they’ll likely become the first team to complete a full-fledged search this offseason. The Grizzlies became the first team to hire a new permanent head coach last week, but they didn’t consider outside options, opting instead to promote J.B. Bickerstaff from the interim role.
Hawks Set To Interview David Fizdale Today
The Hawks are set to interview David Fizdale later today for their now vacant head coach position, Marc Stein of the New York Times reports. Fizdale is among several candidates as Atlanta will also consider Trail Blazers assistant Nate Tibbetts and Hornets assistant Stephen Silas, Stein adds.
We relayed on Thursday that the Hawks were expected to consider Fizdale, Tibbetts, and Silas. Atlanta entered the offseason with Mike Budenholzer under contract for two more seasons but both sides parted amicably earlier this week after he interviewed with the Suns and Knicks.
Fizdale has been a popular candidate for various head coaching vacancies. He previously served as an assistant coach for four seasons with the Hawks under Mike Woodson.
He coached the Grizzlies to a 43-39 record during the 2016/17 campaign but the team was eliminated in the first round of the playoffs.
The 43-year-old was relieved of his duties 19 games into this season as Memphis struggled to win while Fizdale’s relationship with All-Star Marc Gasol reportedly deteriorated. Fizdale has been endorsed by his former players and fellow coaches as he looks for his next opportunity.
Hawks Expected To Consider Fizdale, Tibbetts, Others
2:13pm: Vanterpool won’t be among the Hawks’ head coaching candidates after all, tweets Michael Cunningham of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
9:30am: The Hawks are the latest NBA team to embark on a search for a new head coach, having confirmed on Wednesday that they’ve parted ways with Mike Budenholzer, who had held the position since 2013. While there’s no presumed frontrunner to replace Budenholzer yet, a number of potential candidates have already emerged for Atlanta.
The Hawks are expected to talk to former Grizzlies head coach David Fizdale and current Trail Blazers assistant Nate Tibbetts about their head coaching position, a source tells Sam Amick and Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today. Fizdale has been one of this spring’s most popular head coaching candidates, having previously been linked to the Knicks, Suns, and Hornets. It’s the first time we’ve heard Tibbetts connected to one of the ongoing searches, however.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski adds a few more names to the Hawks’ list of candidates, reporting that the club is also expected to consider Hornets assistant Stephen Silas, Spurs assistants Ime Udoka and James Borrego, and another Trail Blazers assistant, David Vanterpool.
Borrego has been another assistant whose name has frequently popped up in coaching rumors this spring — he has been linked to the Knicks and Suns. Meanwhile, Silas was identified as a possible head coaching candidate in the wake of Steve Clifford‘s ouster in Charlotte. As Amick and Zillgitt note, Silas is “widely respected” around the NBA and was with the Warriors at the same time as current Hawks GM Travis Schlenk.
It’s no surprise that the initial group of candidates for the rebuilding Hawks includes a number of NBA assistants. Wojnarowski writes that the team wants to hire an up-and-coming coach who can evolve along with Atlanta’s young roster. Vanterpool, Silas, and Tibbetts all showed up near the top of a recent list of NBA assistants who should receive head coaching consideration — that list was voted on by about three dozen executives around the league.
Pacific Rumors: Thomas, Budenholzer, Cook, Kings
Isaiah Thomas‘ hip issue has severely damaged his value on the open market, some front office executives told Sean Deveney of the Sporting News. Fears that his hip is either pre-arthritic or already arthritic will likely force the Lakers point guard to accept a one-year “prove it” deal or a two-year deal with a team option, Deveney continues. That’s a dramatic fall for a player who was expected to be a max contract candidate just a year ago, Deveney notes. One GM that Deveney talked to predicted that Thomas would have to accept a “low-risk deal.”
In other news around the Pacific Division:
- It’s unclear why Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer told the Suns he was no longer interested in their head coaching job, Scott Bordow of the Arizona Republic writes. He was either underwhelmed by what he heard from the Suns’ brass, didn’t get a sufficient financial offer or found a better opportunity somewhere else, Bordow adds. Ex-Grizzlies coach David Fizdale appears to be the favorite for the job but he’s also being pursued by the Knicks, Hornets and perhaps the Bucks, Bordow continues. Jazz assistant Igor Kokoskov also appears to be a prime candidate but if the Trail Blazers fire Terry Stotts, he would likely become the frontrunner, Bordow adds.
- Quinn Cook‘s long odyssey from being undrafted in 2015 to rotation player with the Warriors in this year’s playoffs is chronicled by Sports Illustrated’s Jack Fischer. This season alone was a whirlwind, as Fischer explains, with Cook getting waived by the Hawks before training camp, then signing a two-way contract with Golden State. When Stephen Curry was sidelined by a left knee injury, the Warriors signed Cook to a standard contract. He’s averaging 6.8 PPG in 19.8 MPG against the Spurs in the opening round.
- The Kings have $5.4MM in cap room to use by the end of June, Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets. They increased it by $2MM through the set-off in the waived contracts of Anthony Tolliver and Arron Afflalo, Marks adds. The new cap year begins in July.
Hornets To Interview Fizdale, Messina
David Fizdale and Ettore Messina will both have interviews with Charlotte in the next few days, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
Fizdale has been a popular name since the season ended, interviewing for the opening in Phoenix with another interview upcoming for the job in New York. A longtime assistant in Miami, he led the Grizzlies to the playoffs last year before being fired 19 games into this season.
Messina, considered among the world’s top international coaches, has been an assistant in San Antonio for the past four seasons and is filling in for Gregg Popovich in the playoffs after his wife’s death. The Spurs granted permission last weekend for Messina to interview with the Hornets.
Stay up to date with all the latest developments on the coaching front with our Coaching Search Tracker.
Knicks Notes: Coaching Search, O’Quinn, Noah
The Knicks aren’t afraid to take their time as they look for their next coach, according to Frank Isola of The New York Daily News. Today was Mark Jackson‘s turn to interview with team president Steve Mills and GM Scott Perry in Los Angeles, one day after Jerry Stackhouse. News broke tonight that TNT analyst Kenny Smith will be interviewed Friday. Sessions are also scheduled for David Fizdale, Mike Woodson and David Blatt, and Isola states that more candidates could emerge.
Fizdale had an interview today with the Suns and seems to have emerged as the most popular coach on the market. He has a connection with James Jones, a former Heat player who now works in the Phoenix front office and is reportedly a strong advocate for Fizdale. The Knicks are attracted to Fizdale because he has experience with a winning organization in Miami and he has a strong connection to LeBron James, whom the Knicks haven’t given up hope of someday acquiring, Isola adds.
There’s more tonight from New York:
- Jackson’s aversion to analytics may doom his chances with the Knicks, writes Gary Peterson of The San Jose Mercury News. Jackson had a reputation as an old-school coach with the Warriors and was often dismissive of modern techniques. “The [Golden State] analytics staff encountered more resistance than they anticipated,” said Erik Malinowski, author of a book on the building of the Warriors.
- Backup center Kyle O’Quinn isn’t ready to make a decision on his player option, relays Jordan Lauterbach of Newsday. O’Quinn, who recently changed agents, will earn $4.26MM if he decides to opt in for next season. “I came into the season, I don’t want to say without a role, but knowing that anything can happen,” he said. “Whether it be trade talks or things like that, I think I handled it well by putting myself in a solid position where I could display what I could do.”
- The Knicks should resist the temptation to stretch Joakim Noah‘s contract over the next five seasons, advises Bobby Marks of ESPN. Marks points to Deron Williams in Brooklyn and Josh Smith in Detroit as instances where teams have regretted compromising their long-term flexibility. Marks also recommends delaying an extension for Kristaps Porzingis to create more cap room for next summer.
Kenny Smith To Interview With Knicks
Kenny Smith is the latest addition to the Knicks’ coaching search, according to an ESPN report. The TNT analyst, who has no NBA coaching experience, will reportedly interview with the team Friday. Smith played in the league for 10 seasons and joined Turner Sports in 1998.
The Knicks have already held interviews with Mark Jackson and Jerry Stackhouse and plan to bring in David Fizdale later this week. That will be followed next week by a session with David Blatt.
They have also received permission from the Clippers to talk to assistant coach Mike Woodson, but he’s not in the top tier of candidates, according to ESPN.
David Fizdale Plans To Interview With Knicks, Suns
APRIL 17, 10:52pm: Marc Stein of The New York Times tweets that Fizdale will interview with the Suns tomorrow.
APRIL 14th, 1:00pm: Scott Bordow of The Arizona Republic has confirmed that Phoenix plans to interview Fizdale sometime this week.
APRIL 14th, 10:14am: Former Grizzlies head coach David Fizdale plans to interview with the Knicks and Suns next week, tweets Mark Medina of the Mercury News.
Fizdale coached the Grizzlies to a 43-39 record during the 2016/17 season but the team was eliminated in the first round of the postseason. He was relieved of his duties after just 19 games this season as Memphis struggled to win and Fizdale’s relationship with Marc Gasol reportedly deteriorated.
However, Fizdale has been a popular name for many teams with head coaching vacancies. As we relayed this week, Heat guard Dwyane Wade — who played in Miami when Fizdale was an assistant coach — advocated for him as a potential target for the Knicks.
The Suns were granted permission to interview Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer, and are also set to meet with interim head coach Jay Triano and Fizdale.
Before his tenure with the Grizzlies, Fizdale served as an assistant coach with the Heat, winning two NBA championships in 2012 and 2013.
Knicks To Interview Mark Jackson Wednesday
Mark Jackson will interview for the Knicks head coaching job on Wednesday, Chris Haynes of ESPN tweets.
The former Knicks point guard and Warriors head coach has already been named a candidate for the job and this confirms the Knicks’ interest. New York’s brass interviewed Jerry Stackhouse on Tuesday. Stackhouse has been coaching the Raptors’ G League team, Raptors 905, after a long playing career.
Ex-Grizzlies coach David Fizdale, former Cavs coach David Blatt and ex-Knicks coach Mike Woodson are among the other known candidates for the position.
Jackson, an analyst on ABC’s top NBA broadcasting team, compiled a 121-109 record with the Warriors from 2011-14 and took them to the playoffs in two of his three seasons.
Latest On The Knicks’ Coaching Search
APRIL 16th, 4:19pm: Stackhouse is interviewing with the Knicks this afternoon, Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News tweets.
APRIL 15th, 2:13pm: New York is planning to meet with David Fizdale, Mark Jackson, and Jerry Stackhouse for the organization’s head coaching gig, sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.com. All three are expected to be in high demand this hiring season.
Mike Woodson is also on the Knicks’ radar, as they have received permission from the Clippers to talk to their former head coach. However, Woodson is not considered to be in the “top tier” of the organization’s initial candidates.
The Knicks have also set up a meeting with David Blatt, Wojnarowski adds (Twitter link). Blatt, who is considered one of the most successful coaches in European basketball history, took the Cavaliers to the NBA Finals during his only full season with the club.
The team fired coach Jeff Hornacek last week after just two seasons with the franchise. He finished his stint with a record of 60-104.