The New York Knicks have hit some speed bumps in their quest to fill their head coaching vacancy.
The Knicks requested permission to interview Minnesota Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch as well as Houston Rockets head coach Ime Udoka, Shams Charania of ESPN reported on Tuesday. However, the Knicks ultimately had both of those requests denied by the two respective teams, Charania adds.
Finch and Udoka had both been linked to the Knicks opening for the last several days now. But with the latter winning 52 games and a division title this season and the former having made back-to-back appearances in the Western Conference Finals, they were always going to be extremely tough gets. Now this latest news effectively confirms that Finch and Udoka will be staying put in their respective posts.
The Knicks, who made it to the conference finals themselves this year for the first time since 2000, are looking for a new head coach after stunningly deciding earlier this month to fire Tom Thibodeau. Some new details have since emerged on why exactly Thibodeau was let go.
Charania notes that the Knicks can still request permission to interview other currently employed NBA head coaches. However, if the Knicks do go that route and successfully make a hire, they will be required to provide compensation to the employed head coach’s existing team.
Being denied permission to interview Finch and Udoka ultimately might not be the worst outcome for the Knicks. In fact, a report broke earlier this week claiming that the Knicks have a different preferred candidate in mind.