New York Knicks Hiring Jeff Hornacek A Pleasant Surprise

The New York Knicks have found their man, as Jeff Hornacek looks like he will become the 28th head coach in the franchise’s history.

The New York Knicks look like they have finally decided on their next head coach, as sources say that Jeff Hornacek will take over the job. The news was first reported by Bleacher Report, while ESPN New York’s Ian Begley said the news was confirmed by league sources.

While no deal has been finalized as of this post going live, the Knicks had informed other candidates that were in the running that Hornacek would be their choice. That collective sigh and cheer you hear was from the Knicks fans that had been dreading Kurt Rambis having the interim tag removed and becoming the head coach full-time.

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Phil Jackson would not comment on the situation when questioned by the New York Daily News. But, they did snap a picture of Jackson with general manager Steve Mills and Hornacek coming out of a steakhouse in New York City.

That is a steakhouse that Hornecek can now frequent, as he is set to become the Knicks’ head coach. It is a surprise to many, but a pleasant one for sure.

Hornacek had a meeting with the Jackson earlier in the week, becoming the fourth known candidate to talk to Jackson about the job; Rambis, David Blatt and Frank Vogel were the other three known candidates. Of those candidates, it is definitely a surprise that Hornacek has been pegged as the next head coach.

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Unlike those three players, Hornacek has no ties to anyone within the front office with a prominent position. The relationship between Rambis and Jackson has been well documented, while Vogel worked under Jackson when he was the Los Angeles Lakers head coach, and hired Brian Shaw in part because of the knowledge he had of the Triangle Offense that Jackson runs. Blatt played with Mills at Princeton, while the most connection Hornacek has to Jackson is that his Utah Jazz teams lost to the Chicago Bulls teams Jackson led in multiple NBA Finals.

That is what makes this hiring so shocking, as Jackson laid out pretty bluntly what he was looking for in a head coach. He wanted someone that he had previous experience working with and that has extensive knowledge of the triangle offense. Hornacek falls under neither of those categories, but the two obviously hit it off during their meeting this week.

The triangle offense emphasizes the importance of a point guard, which would not fit into what Hornacek ran during his time with the Phoenix Suns. With the Suns, Hornacek’s offense was pick-and-roll heavy and reliant on his guards. That would make him a weird fit for the Knicks on multiple levels, as Jackson has been persistent that he wants the triangle ran, and the backcourt is easily the weakest part of the Knicks’ roster currently.

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But, Hornacek showed that he can get the most out of his players no matter who he has at his disposal. The Suns rosters he had to deal with were flawed to put it nicely, but he made things work and is regarded as a bright offensive mind.

Hornacek led the Suns to a 48-34 record in his first season at the helm, leading a young team to the cusp of the postseason in an ultra competitive Western Conference. But, the Suns would fall to 39-43 in his second season before he was fired during the third season with a 14-35 season.

While the win-loss record isn’t impressive, Hornacek was highly regarded around the NBA coaching circles as many people thought he got a raw deal with the Suns. The work he did with a roster that never meshed well helped him receive good marks.

He is also a Jerry Sloan guy, someone that Jackson has a lot of respect for according to ESPN’s Marc Stein while speaking on SportsCenter. Hornacek was not someone mentioned for this job before this week, but it is a sign that Jackson is willing to bend and compromise on certain demands if he feels that it will improve the team.

This is an encouraging sign for any Knicks fan, as Hornacek signals a change or sorts in thinking of the front office. He does not fit the mold of a Phil Jackson puppet as Derek Fisher did and Rambis would have, so that is one thing to be happy about.

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Ultimately we will have to wait and see how things turn out. But for today, there should be a lot of smiles among Knicks fans as Jackson went outside the box and his comfort zone by hiring Hornacek.