By Anthony Caruso III | Publisher
The New York Knicks have fired head coach Mike Woodson on Monday. Woodson and his entire coaching staff have been let go.
He lasted three seasons with the Knicks. Woodson also guided the team to one playoff series win.
“I have a tremendous amount of respect for Mike Woodson and his entire staff,” Knicks President of Basketball Operations Phil Jackson said. “The coaches and players on this team had an extremely difficult 2013-14 season, and blame should not be put on one individual. But the time has come for change throughout the franchise as we start the journey to assess and build this team for next season and beyond.”
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Woodson — who previously played for the Knicks during the 1980-81 season to begin his playing career in the league — served as a Knicks assistant coach for one season before taking over the head role. He took over on March 14th, 2012, after former head coach Mike D’Antoni resigned.
He guided the team to an 18-6 record after taking over for D’Antoni. The team lost in the first round of the playoffs during the 2011-12 season.
The Knicks went 54-28 during his first full season with the team in 2012-13. The team advanced to the Conference semifinals before being eliminated from the playoffs.
This past season, the franchise went 37-45. The Knicks did not make the playoffs.
According to reports, the team is focusing on former NBA player Steve Kerr in their coaching search. Jackson is expected to reach out to Kerr soon.
Jackson previously coached Kerr with the Chicago Bulls. Kerr is currently serving as an NBA on TNT analyst.
“I do anticipate talking with Phil Jackson at some point. When that time comes, it will come,” Kerr said on his weekly SiriusXM NBA Radio show, his first on-the-record comments about being the potential successor to Woodson. “For now, there’s really not a whole lot to talk about.”
Kerr has no prior coaching experience. But he is reportedly going to be a candidate for head coaching vacancies this coaching cycle.
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“Coaches basically know when they go in that they are likely to be fired. It’s a brutal business, it’s a brutal profession,” Kerr said on Sirius XM. “I think back to a year ago when the Knicks were one of the best stories in the league, they won 54 games, I thought Mike Woodson was one of the top coaches in the league. He did a fantastic job. And then everything fell apart this year for a number of reasons.”
Kerr was previously the Phoenix Suns GM for three seasons. Then he decided to step down from the role.
If the Knicks hire Kerr, they would hope that the gamble would work out with Kerr. The Brooklyn Nets took a similar gamble recently when they hired Jason Kidd, who had no prior coaching experience before being hired by the team.
He has guided the Nets to the postseason.
Another name being linked to the position under Jackson is Derek Fisher. He could potentially be brought in as an assistant coach for Kerr.
The 39-year-old could be the candidate if Kerr turns down the job if he gets another job offer from another team. Fisher has been in the NBA since 1996. He has won five NBA Championships in his career.
Jackson coached Fisher under the Lakers. Together, Fisher won all five NBA Championships under Jackson’s coaching with the Lakers.
Outside of playing for the Lakers, Fisher also played for the Golden State Warriors, Utah Jazz, Dallas Mavericks, and the Oklahoma City Thunder.
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