A new rumor about the New York Knicks’ head coach search is sure to induce an eyeroll from many fans of the franchise.
During a Tuesday appearance on the Knicks Film School YouTube channel, SNY Knicks insider Ian Begley offered up a surprising nugget of news on the team’s head coach search. According to him, former New York head coach Mike Woodson is a potential “wild card” in the process to find Tom Thibodeau’s replacement.
The 67-year-old coached the team for three seasons between 2011 and 2014. In his first two years, he guided the team to a pair of playoff appearances. Including a trip to the Eastern Conference semifinals in 2012-2013. However, he was dismissed from the role the following season after a 37-45 finish.
While Woodson is a respected coach, the idea of his return is sure to make many Knicks fans shake their heads in confusion. This current New York roster is very much one built to end the team’s championship drought. Throughout his close to 30-year career as a basketball coach, Woodson has not given the impression that he can take a team to the promised land.
The reason the organization reportedly made attempts to pry Jason Kidd and Ime Udoka away from their current jobs is that they are younger coaches, and have both taken teams to the NBA Finals during much shorter careers than Woodson.
Furthermore, there are only two Knicks alums who would really appeal to fans in a possible return. Jeff Van Gundy — the last head coach to lead the team to the NBA Finals — coaching the team a second time would be intriguing. And former first-round pick and New York native Mark Jackson getting a long overdue second chance at being a coach in Gotham would make sense for diehard supporters.
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After earning his journalism degree in 2017, Jason Burgos served as a contributor to several sites, including MMA Sucka ... More about Jason Burgos