New York Knicks: A Look at Head Coach Candidates

As it has been since David Fizdale was fired in December, the New York Knicks search for a head coach continues. Here is a look at the candidates:

The New York Knicks‘ front office is making some major changes, and the number of head coach candidates goes up daily. What are the Knickerbockers looking for? Is it a coach for the future, who will develop their young team? Or does the team want a coach who will help them win now, who would be better equipped to handle a veteran squad?

So far the Knicks have interviewed nine candidates for their head coach position, others will be interviewed on Zoom due to the circumstances right now. Tom Thibodeau was thought to be the lead candidate probably since Rose became President, but Kenny Atkinson has started getting “legitimate internal support.”

A fan like myself would love to have Mike Woodson back as he was the last winning coach for the team, making the playoffs in 2012-13 and leading the Eastern Conference at the same time.

Then there’s Mike Miller, the G-League coach thrown into the dysfunction that was the Knicks’ front office by Mills when he fired David Fizdale.

Overall, I hope the Knicks are looking for a coach who will work with the young players, from Damyean Dotson to RJ Barrett. These young players need development and guidance, and so far their only experiences in the NBA are of losing… both games and coaches.

The most important thing in my opinion for this young Knicks team is player development. Some of these coaches have had winning seasons, taking their teams to the playoffs, but none of them have won a title, only Tom Thibodeau has gone to the Eastern Conference Finals.

Now that Leon Rose is in charge, things are beginning to move. From all the reports, they are doing a great job filling front office positions. Now, let’s take a look at what they are doing for the players’ development.