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Knicks Notes: Brunson, Towns, Thibodeau, Hart

June 7th, 2025 at 9:57pm CST by Arthur Hill

Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns are the most valuable trade assets the Knicks possess as they try to finish the job of building a championship roster, according to Kristian Winfield of The New York Daily News. Winfield ranks the potential value of everything New York has to work with this summer, starting with Brunson and going down to Boston’s top-45 protected second-round pick in 2028. Team president Leon Rose has limited draft capital remaining after last year’s trades for Towns and Mikal Bridges, so most of the coveted assets would be players.

It seems unthinkable that the Knicks would part with Brunson, their captain, especially after he accepted a team-friendly extension that could keep him under contract through the 2028/29 season. They may be more willing to move on from Towns, whose contract becomes more burdensome until he reaches a $61MM player option in 2027/28. Towns’ defensive shortcomings can make it challenging to have him and Brunson on the floor together, which Indiana exploited in the conference finals.

Bridges, New York’s 2032 first-round pick and OG Anunoby round out Winfield’s top five. The Knicks face a looming decision on Bridges, who is entering the final year of his contract and will be eligible for an offseason extension potentially worth $156MM over four years. Anunoby, the second-highest-paid player on the team, is signed for three more seasons and holds a $48.4MM player option for 2028/29.

There’s more on the Knicks:

  • The team’s next head coach will be walking into an extremely high-pressure situation, as reaching the conference finals wasn’t enough to save Tom Thibodeau‘s job, notes Steve Popper of Newsday. He points out that the Knicks have been mentioned as serious suitors for Giannis Antetokounmpo and Kevin Durant, so the new coach will have to adjust his preferred style if one of those stars is in New York. Popper cautions that the team may have to aim smaller and states that avoiding the second apron figures to be an offseason priority. The Knicks are currently $8MM under that threshold, but can expand that by $3.5MM by declining their team option on P.J. Tucker. They could save another $2MM by also declining their option on Ariel Hukporti, but he may be too valuable at that price to let go.
  • Thibodeau deserved another season as head coach to hone the Brunson-Towns combination and figure out ways to improve the defense, contends Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe. Washburn argues that Thibodeau took the fall for management’s mistakes, including giving up five first-round picks for Bridges and parting with two valuable pieces from last year’s team to bring in Towns.
  • Josh Hart, who played for Jay Wright at Villanova, fully supports Wright’s decision to not pursue the Knicks’ coaching vacancy. “Man Thank You. Stay retired!” Hart tweeted.
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Jay Wright Not A Candidate For Knicks’ Coaching Job

June 7th, 2025 at 1:56pm CST by Rory Maher

Former Villanova coach Jay Wright is not a candidate for the Knicks‘ head coaching job, reports Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports (via Twitter).

According to Rothstein, Wright frequently talks to Knicks president Leon Rose, who is aware that Wright is happy in retirement. Wright retired in 2022 after 21 seasons with the Wildcats.

Wright, 63, has been a commentator for CBS in recent years. Although he was floated as a possible candidate after Tom Thibodeau was fired, subsequent reports indicated that Wright was highly unlikely to leave retirement to take the job.

Wright said last June he had no interest taking an NBA job, whether it was in New York or elsewhere. His ties to the Knicks are obvious, as three key players — Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges and Josh Hart — played under Wright at Villanova. Wright led the Wildcats to four Final Four appearances and won two national championships (in 2016 and 2018).

Multiple Knicks beat reporters have confirmed the news (all Twitter links).

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Latest On Knicks’ Coaching Job

June 4th, 2025 at 10:21am CST by Dana Gauruder

While numerous rival NBA executives believed that the Knicks had a replacement lined up before firing Tom Thibodeau on Tuesday, that’s not the case, Marc Stein reports in his latest Substack article.

The Knicks have fostered the notion that this decision was made by team president Leon Rose but many of the same executives are skeptical of that story, Stein says, considering Rose’s close ties to Thibodeau and the fact that Rose insisted on hiring him.

Meanwhile, numerous league observers acquainted with the inner workings of the Knicks organization believe owner James Dolan has been a “non-fan” of Thibodeau for a long time. Dolan reportedly sat in on post-season meetings with key players.

Two head coaches who are not currently available but said to interest the Knicks are the Mavericks‘ Jason Kidd and Rockets‘ Ime Udoka. However, Stein hears that Houston would deny any attempts by the Knicks to interview Udoka and the Mavs would likely do the same regarding Kidd, though he could not immediately confirm that.

Kidd, who played for the Knicks and interviewed for their head coaching job in 2020, has two seasons left on a contract extension he received during last season’s playoffs. He has also has close ties to Giannis Antetokounmpo, whom the Knicks are expected to pursue in trade talks if Milwaukee makes him available.

Among available coaches, former Villanova coach Jay Wright and Cavaliers assistant Johnnie Bryant — a finalist for Phoenix’s head coaching job — are presumed to be likely candidates. Wright has repeatedly said in the past he’s not interested in coaching in the NBA, though several of his former players are key players for the Knicks.

Here’s more on the Knicks coaching situation:

  • Numerous sources told Adam Zagoria (Twitter link) that it’s doubtful Wright would come out of retirement to coach the Knicks. Seth Davis, who has worked closely with Wright at CBS in recent years, is also extremely skeptical about the idea that Wright would want the job (Twitter link).
  • Their search will include college coaches and won’t be limited to current assistants or former NBA head coaches, Kris Pursiainen of Clutch Points tweets.
  • The Knicks better find their “Joe Torre,” who won multiple championship with the Yankees, Mike Vaccaro of the New York Post opines, arguing that the decision to dump Thibodeau makes no sense otherwise.
  • Stefan Bondy of the New York Post reiterates that he’s hearing former Nuggets coach Michael Malone is not a candidate.
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Latest On Thibodeau Firing, Knicks’ Coaching Search

June 3rd, 2025 at 6:56pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The obvious question for the Knicks now is ‘Who is Tom Thibodeau‘s replacement?”

In the aftermath of Thibodeau’s shocking firing on Tuesday, speculation is already running rampant about who the Knicks will choose in the hopes of finally getting to the Finals in future seasons.

The Athletic staff compiled a list of names, in alphabetic order, that included Dave Bliss, James Borrego, Johnnie Bryant, Mike Brown, Taylor Jenkins, Darvin Ham, Michael Malone, Micah Nori, Chris Quinn, Sean Sweeney and even former Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy.

Brown (Kings), Jenkins (Grizzlies) and Malone (Nuggets) were all dismissed from their head coaching jobs this season. Bryant, a former Knicks assistant to Thibodeau, is reportedly a finalist for the Suns’ head coaching position.

Stefan Bondy of the New York Post tossed in some names from the college ranks, including two-time national champion Dan Hurley, who declined the Lakers offer last summer to stay at UConn. Bondy also mentioned Alabama’s Nate Oats and Arkansas’ John Calipari into the mix.

Former Villanova coach Jay Wright, along with NBA head coaching veterans Mike Budenholzer and Frank Vogel, were among the candidates that ESPN’s Zach Kram offered.

Here’s more on the Thibodeau firing and its implications:

  • In the statement released by the team after Thibodeau’s dismissal, the stated goal was “our organization is singularly focused on winning a championship for our fans.” According to ESPN Tim Bontemps’ sources, that is indeed why the move was made. The Knicks decided a new voice was needed to lift this franchise to the next level. Bontemps pointed out that the team’s high-priced starting five was outscored from Jan. 1 through the end of the regular season and also struggled in the postseason until Mitchell Robinson was inserted into the lineup.
  • The way the front office handled exit interviews after the season was different, Ian Begley of SNY TV reports (Twitter video link). The team’s top players were called in to meetings that included owner James Dolan, though the team’s president was the one who made the ultimate decision. Leon Rose had previously been a staunch supporter of Thibodeau but his feelings waned through this season. “Leon Rose obviously saw something different over the past year-plus that led him to believe that this is the right move for the franchise with James Dolan backing Leon Rose there,” Begley said.
  • A source told NJ Advance Media contributor Adam Zagoria that New York would be a “good landing spot” for Malone, who has ties to the area. Malone was born in Queens, N.Y. and played point guard at Seton Hall Prep. His late father, Brendan Malone, was a Knicks assistant under Hubie Brown. However, Bondy tweets that Malone replacing Thibodeau is “not going to happen.”
  • Thibodeau deserved another season, James Edwards of The Athletic opined, considering he was pivotal in bringing the franchise back to prominence. Edwards noted that the core group had just been pieced together this season. Now, there’s pressure to make sure the next head coach is the perfect hire or else the franchise could suffer major setbacks, Edwards concludes.
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And-Ones: France, Japan, FAs, Klutch, West, Wright

June 27th, 2024 at 3:10pm CST by Rory Maher

Ahead of the 2024 Olympics in Paris, host nation France has announced that two players from its preliminary 19-man roster have been cut (Twitter link): former NBA guard Killian Hayes, who is currently an unrestricted free agent, and Thunder forward Ousmane Dieng.

Neither Hayes nor Dieng have ever suited up for the senior national team, according to Eurohoops, but they did represent their home country at the youth level. The French national team will need to trim its roster down to 12 players from the current 17 before the Olympics begin at the end of July.

Japan recently announced its own 16-man preliminary roster ahead of the Olympics, per Eurohoops. Lakers forward Rui Hachimura headlines the group, which also features Yuta Watanabe. France, Japan, Germany and the winner of the Olympic qualifying tournament in Latvia will comprise Group C of the 12-team tournament.

Here’s more from around the basketball world:

  • John Hollinger of The Athletic ranks the top free agent small forwards and power forwards, respectively. Hollinger’s BORD$ formula rates LeBron James as the top overall free agent regardless of position, with Paul George the top small forward. Free agents can begin negotiating with other teams on June 30.
  • Klutch Sports Group and Rich Paul have been sued in federal court by longtime NBA agent Mark Termini, writes Mark Vorkunov of The Athletic. Termini, a former associate of Klutch, is suing for $4.9MM plus interest for an alleged breach of contract. Termini claims Klutch began paying him less than he was owed as the “lead negotiator” on several contracts from 2018-20. “This lawsuit is inaccurate and misguided,” a Klutch spokesperson said. “And will be addressed in the proper forum.”
  • Virginia prosecutors have dropped a pair of criminal charges — felony drug possession and violation of pretrial conditions — against former NBA guard Delonte West, reports Baxter Holmes of ESPN. The 40-year-old is still facing two other charges (resisting arrest and obstruction of justice) stemming from his arrest earlier this month, according to Holmes, who adds that West is due in court on July 11.
  • The Knicks will soon have four former Villanova Wildcats on their roster, but former Nova coach Jay Wright has no intention of becoming a coach with New York or any other NBA team, he told Zach Braziller of The New York Post.
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Central Notes: Pistons, Williams, Holiday, Antetokounmpo

April 9th, 2023 at 9:12pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Pistons general manager Troy Weaver is expected to talk to two former Thunder assistant coaches he worked with in Oklahoma City — the Bulls’ Josh Longstaff and the Nets’ Brian Keefe — for Detroit’s head coaching job, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN tweets.

Dwane Casey announced after the Pistons’ season finale that he would be moving to the front office.

Bucks assistant Charles Lee, former Celtics head coach Ime Udoka, Raptors assistant Adrian Griffin, Heat assistant Chris Quinn and Vanderbilt coach Jerry Stackhouse have already been mentioned as potential targets for the Pistons’ job.

Former Overtime Elite coach Kevin Ollie, Mavericks assistant Sean Sweeney, Pistons assistant Rex Kalamian and former Villanova coach Jay Wright are some other potential candidates that may intrigue Weaver, James L. Edwards III of The Athletic speculates.

We have more from the Central Division:

  • Bulls big men Patrick Williams and Nikola Vucevic did something that has become an increasing rarity in the league. They appeared in all 82 regular season contests. Williams, who was injured most of last season, said he takes pride in being available, K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago writes. “It’s a blessing to play all 82,” Williams said. “It was something that I definitely wanted to do and something I want to continue to do throughout the course of my career.”
  • Bucks guard Jrue Holiday achieved all of his regular season bonuses, ESPN’s Bobby Marks tweets. He earned a total of $1.65MM for reaching incentives in minutes played, games played, rebounds and assists, as well as making the All-Star team. He still has a chance make an additional $4.1MM in bonuses, ranging from making the All-Defensive team to postseason team success, Marks adds.
  • While team goals means more to him, Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo believes he deserves the Most Valuable Player award, he told Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report. “Look, I will never try to create a narrative about the work I put in and maybe that might hurt me because I believe the last five years I’ve been the MVP,” he said. “Do I want a third MVP? Hell (bleeping) yeah I want a third one. I am extremely competitive. I try to make my team successful. …. I’m never going to be one who discredits anybody else’s work. That’s not who I am as a person. And I will never beg for an MVP award that I believe I deserve.”
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And-Ones: Pangos, West, Wright, Emmert

April 28th, 2022 at 4:13pm CST by Rory Maher

Former Cavaliers guard Kevin Pangos will sign with Italian club Olimpia Milano for the 2022/23 season, sources tell Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. Pangos played six seasons in Europe before earning a roster spot with Cleveland in training camp.

Pangos saw spot duty in 24 games for the Cavs, averaging 1.6 points and 1.3 assists in 6.9 minutes per night. He was waived in February. The 29-year-old reportedly inked a deal with CSKA Moscow after his stint with the Cavs, but hadn’t traveled to Russia as of March 1 due to the ongoing war in Ukraine.

In 2020/21, Pangos averaged 13.5 PPG and 6.6 APG on .449/.390/.845 shooting in 39 EuroLeague contests (28.9 MPG) for Zenit Saint Petersburg, earning a spot on the All-EuroLeague First Team.

Here’s more from around the basketball world:

  • Delonte West, who played eight seasons in the NBA from 2004-2012, has joined the BIG3 draft pool, the league announced (via Twitter). The 38-year-old appeared in 432 career games, averaging 9.7 points, 2.9 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.1 steals in 27.4 minutes per contest.
  • Former Villanova coach Jay Wright is leaving the door open to a potential move to the NBA, according to a report from ESPN. “That was something I always thought about,” Wright said of his NBA ambitions. “My experience with the Olympics kind of scratched that itch. … I kind of feel like I did it a little bit. And I loved coaching those guys.” Wright was part of Gregg Popovich‘s staff for the 2020 men’s team, who won the gold medal last summer. “Right now I definitely need a break,” Wright said on Tuesday. “Right now I’m looking forward to this [special assistant] position at Villanova. But honestly, down the road, I’d be lying — I don’t know what I’m going to feel like.” A previous report indicated Wright wasn’t expected to have interest in an NBA role.
  • NCAA president Mark Emmert has agreed to step down from his post by June 2023, per Eben Novy-Williams of Sportico. The move came as a surprise to many in the college sports world. Emmert has served as president since 2010.
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And-Ones: Wright, Martin, Rhoden, Maxey, Poole, Draft

April 21st, 2022 at 9:13pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Jay Wright isn’t interested in coaching in the NBA after retiring from his post at Villanova.

Wright, who won two national championships, enjoyed assisting Gregg Popovich on the Team USA staff but never came close to leaving Villanova for NBA jobs, says ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). Sources who have talked to Wright don’t believe the NBA holds appeal to him now or in future, Wojnarowski adds.

According to a school press release, Wright will take the post of  Special Assistant to the President at the university. Fordham head coach Kyle Neptune, a former Wildcats assistant, will replace Wright, Jeff Goodman of Stadium tweets.

We have more from around the basketball world:

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2021 Hall Of Fame Class Announced

May 16th, 2021 at 10:46am CST by Arthur Hill

As expected, Paul Pierce, Ben Wallace and Chris Webber will be part of the Class of 2021 for the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

They will be joined by Chris Bosh, coaches Rick Adelman, Jay Wright and Bill Russell, and WNBA players Yolanda Griffith and Lauren Jackson.

Among former players, Bosh is the only name that hasn’t been reported already. He is best known as part of the Big Three in Miami that made four straight Finals appearances and won two NBA titles early last decade. He played 13 NBA seasons, with the first seven coming in Toronto before getting a chance to join LeBron James and Dwyane Wade with the Heat.

Bosh is an 11-time All-Star and was a second-team All-NBA selection in 2007. A medical condition ended his career early, and he was elected to the Hall in his first year of eligibility.

Adelman made two trips to the NBA Finals and is the ninth-winningest coach in league history with 1,042 career victories. He played seven seasons in the league, but made his greatest impact as a coach, guiding the Trail Blazers, Warriors, Kings, Rockets and Timberwolves.

Wright has been the head coach at Villanova since 2001 and has more than 600 career wins. He has led the Wildcats to three Final Fours and captured NCAA titles in 2016 and 2018.

Russell was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1975 for his legendary playing career, but he was also a pioneer as a coach. He took over as player-coach of the Celtics in 1966, becoming the first Black head coach in North American professional sports. Russell had a 341-290 coaching record and won a pair of NBA titles.

Griffith is a seven-time WNBA all-star and was captured the league’s MVP, Newcomer of the Year and Defensive Player awards in 1999. She was named Finals MVP in 2005 after leading the Sacramento Monarchs to their first WNBA championship.

Jackson was an Australian star who won three silver medals in the Olympics. She’s among the WNBA career leaders in games, minutes, field goals and three-pointers and helped the Seattle Storm win two titles, capturing Finals MVP honors in 2010.

Several other players were also voted into the Hall, Wojnarowski adds (Twitter links):

  • International Committee: Toni Kukoc.
  • Contributors: Val Ackerman, Cotton Fitzsimmons, Howard Garfinkel.
  • Veteran’s Committee: Bob Dandridge.
  • Women’s Veteran Committee: Pearl Moore.
  • Early African-American Pioneers: Clarence Jenkins.

Photo courtesy of USA Sports Images.

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Chris Bosh, Paul Pierce, Rick Adelman Among 2021 Hall Of Fame Finalists

March 9th, 2021 at 2:37pm CST by Luke Adams

The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame has announced 14 finalists for the Class of 2021 election, according to a press release. These nine players and five coaches are the candidates to be named Hall-of-Famers when this year’s class is announced on May 16.

This year’s finalists are as follows:

Players:

Coaches:

Hardaway, Johnson, Wallace, Webber, and Andrews have been finalists in the past and are receiving consideration again this year. The other nine are first-time finalists, though Russell has – of course – already been inducted into the Hall of Fame as a player.

Among this year’s first-time finalists, Bosh, Pierce, and Adelman are a few of the most interesting names. Bosh earned 11 All-Star nods and won a pair of NBA championships before a blood-clotting issue cut his career short. Pierce made 10 All-Star teams and won a title (and a Finals MVP award) over the course of his 19 NBA seasons. Adelman, meanwhile, is the ninth-winningest coach in NBA history, with an all-time regular season record of 1,042-749 (.582).

Due to the coronavirus, 2020’s Hall of Fame induction ceremony couldn’t be held as planned last year and has been rescheduled for May 14-16. The Class of 2020 includes Kevin Garnett, Tim Duncan, and the late Kobe Bryant.

The ceremony for the Class of 2021 is scheduled to take place in September 2021, following May’s announcement of the inductees.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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