Tag: Steve Mills

With Knicks president Steve Mills on …

With Knicks president Steve Mills on shaky ground until the club shows progress, owner James Dolan could make another run at Raptors president Masai Ujiri. According to a source, if Mills is fired after the season, Dolan likely would renew his quest for Ujiri, who built the Raptors 2019 title team. “Why wouldn’t he — he’s the best GM in the league,’’ one NBA source said.

Steve Mills on the hot seat?

These last two seasons fall directly on Mills, who, according to sources, will either be reassigned or simply removed from the building. His expiration date is long overdue. The Athletic reported last month that Dolan will try again to pry Raptors President Masai Ujiri from Toronto. If that doesn’t work, maybe NBA Commissioner Adam Silver will point Dolan toward R.C. Buford, Sam Presti, Neil Olshey and Daryl Morey. The Knicks are in the early stages of another massive overhaul that will only work if Dolan gives his next executive savior full autonomy.

Under-the-radar candidates to replace David Fizdale as coach of Knicks

The New York Knicks have parted ways with head coach David Fizdale, leaving an opportunity for someone else to try fixing the franchise.

The New York Knicks have parted ways with head coach David Fizdale, leaving an opportunity for someone else to try fixing the franchise.

You have probably heard the big-name candidates like Mark Jackson, Jeff Van Gundy and Kenny Smith, especially since they all have big profiles now as regulars on television and have ties to either New York or the Knicks.

There are also the familiar faces who may get consideration and you’ve probably seen them other lists – coaches like Tom Thibodeau, Ty Lue, Jason Kidd, Mike Brown and Mark Woodson.

Other obvious names to consider are assistants Mike Miller (not the one who played in the NBA) and Pat Sullivan, both of whom are current assistants. Miller has been named the interim head coach, so it’s possible that he could take over permanently if he does a great job. New York also has two other assistants (Kaleb Canales and Jud Buechler) who will be asked to step up with Fizdale and former assistant coach Keith Smart gone.

Perhaps no one makes more sense than former NBA All-Star Chauncey Billups, who played for the Knicks in 2011 and has connections to the team’s front office (since he played under current GM Scott Perry in Detroit). However, he has maintained that he is more interested in becoming a front-office executive than coaching.

Regardless, this is a tough job and someone who has ties to their front office in some ways may have an advantage since this is such a crucial hire. Here are some under-the-radar candidates to keep an eye on as the Knicks conduct their coaching search.

Craig Robinson

(Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)

Back in April 2018, Frank Isola actually mentioned Knicks executive Craig Robinson as a potential candidate for their head coaching vacancy before they eventually hired Fizdale (via New York Daily News):

“Robinson is another longshot Knicks candidate, according to a team source. The former Oregon State head coach — and brother of former First Lady Michelle Obama — currently serves as the Knicks’ VP of player and organization development.”

Robinson was the head coach at Oregon State from 2008 until 2014. During his playing days at Princeton, he was teammates with Steve Mills — the President of Basketball Operations for the New York Knicks. It is also worth mentioning that former NBA champion coach Dave Blatt was one of their teammates as well, though he is currently dealing with serious health issues.

Becky Hammon

Becky Hammon was once a fixture at Madison Square Garden, as she played for the New York Liberty from 1999 until 2006. The San Antonio Spurs assistant was once again promoted within the Spurs organization last year and has been a fixture on the sidelines during Summer League games for the team as well. She has received some consideration for other head coaching jobs recently, such as the Milwaukee Bucks’ and Detroit Pistons’ gigs. One of the looming questions for her is how long Gregg Popovich will remain head coach in San Antonio. If he decides to retire soon, she could be in line to take over as the next head coach of the Spurs.

Adrian Griffin

(Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images)

While he is currently the lead assistant coach for the defending champion Toronto Raptors, Adrian Griffin could make some sense for the New York Knicks. He attended college in New Jersey at Seton Hall University, where he is in their athletics Hall of Fame. During his final NBA campaign in 2007-08, he played 13 games for the Seattle Supersonics. Scott Perry was the Assistant General Manager for Seattle that season. Then, when Perry was the Vice President of Basketball Operations for the Orlando Magic in 2015-16, Griffin was one of the team’s assistant coaches.

Darvin Ham

(Photo by Gary Dineen/NBAE via Getty Images)

Former NBA champion Darvin Ham played for the Detroit Pistons from 2003 through 2005. During that time, Perry served as the Director of Player Personnel for the organization, so he’s familiar with Ham. Ham has previously been in consideration for head coaching positions with the Minnesota Timberwolves and Cleveland Cavaliers. We also previously mentioned him as a potential candidate for the head coaching vacancy with the Atlanta Hawks in 2018 before the team went in a different direction.

Chad Forcier

(Photo by Joe Murphy/NBAE via Getty Images)

Milwaukee Bucks assistant Chad Forcier was an assistant coach for the Detroit Pistons (2001-03) when Perry was the team’s Director of Player Personnel. He later served as an assistant for the Orlando Magic, including the final year Perry was their assistant general manager (2016-17). He worked directly with Gregg Popovich when he was an assistant with the San Antonio Spurs and has served as a lead assistant coach for the Memphis Grizzlies. His ties to Perry and coaching experience could make him an interesting candidate to watch.

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David Fizdale wasn’t the biggest problem in New York, but he was definitely a problem

The Knicks still have much bigger issues at hand.

David Fizdale’s tenure in New York is over. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reports. He went out with a whimper, losing 129-92 to the Denver Nuggets on Thursday night.

The loss was so bad that Knicks owner Jim Dolan as well as executives Scott Perry and Steve Mills all left their seats in the final moments of the team’s loss to the Nuggets. The change felt inevitable at that point. Fizdale was done.

This had been a long time coming. The Knicks have been reeling for quite some time now. They’re 4-18 now and are on pace for a measly 15 wins this season. They quite possibly are the worst team in the NBA, and Fizdale’s 21-83 record wasn’t getting any better. They simply decided it was time to cut bait.

Fizdale wasn’t just a scapegoat in New York

He was actively part of the problem with the Knicks. He was never dealt a good hand to play with, but he made his situation even tougher by consistently playing that hand the wrong way.

His rotations were beyond wonky. There’s no way Allonzo Trier, as their best perimeter scorer, should only play six minutes in a blowout loss against Denver. Marcus Morris, Julius Randle and Bobby Portis spent way too much time on the court together, and Frank Ntilikina didn’t play nearly enough as their best perimeter defender.

Plus, the Knicks’ young guys weren’t really developing. Mitchell Robinson, as great as he is as a rim protector, averages 3.6 fouls in 21 minutes a night. Kevin Knox has also fallen off after a hot start – and don’t even get me started on Dennis Smith, Jr.’s season so far.

Part of that is the player and their individual effort, but it’s also a coach’s individual responsibility to craft systems on both ends that their players can develop and flourish in. Fizdale didn’t do that.

Coming into this season, the Knicks wanted to compete and develop their young guys. They haven’t done either. That’s why Fizdale is out.

The Knicks’ problems still run much deeper than the coach

Fizdale’s departure, as necessary as it might be, isn’t going to stop the bleeding for the Knicks. They’ve still got a roster with absolutely no balance, chock full of veteran power forwards that don’t move the needle one bit at all.

And that’s where the Knicks real problem lies — in the construction of their roster and the person who built it. Steve Mills has been a straight up embarrassment as a team president.

His most notable move is trading the team’s best drafted player since Patrick Ewing – Kristaps Porzingis – to open up cap space for free agents that turned in to Taj Gibson, Randle and Marcus Morris.

There’s more, though. He issued a letter to fans in the summer after missing out on the free agents they thought they were going to sign. Then, months later, he throws Fizdale under the bus by actually laying down the groundwork for his dismissal when the season started to cave.

The thought of this team being competitive was always laughable. The fact that Mills sold Dolan on a vision that was never realistic is the real fireable offense here. But that’s also why the Knicks won’t solve their issues anytime soon.

At the end of the day, the team’s owner continues to settle for mediocrity year after year after year. Fizdale’s failed tenure was just a pebble in the grand scheme. James Dolan’s management of the team is the landslide.

If Fizdale is fired in-season, he’ll …

If Fizdale is fired in-season, he’ll have two years left on his contract, according to reports. It’s unclear if those two years are fully guaranteed. Mills and Perry also have years remaining on their deals. Mills, per sources, has a double option on one of the remaining years of his deal. So Dolan would pay them money not to work if he decides to fire them.

If Mills fires Fizdale, the next …

If Mills fires Fizdale, the next question is if he and Perry will keep their jobs beyond this season. In a conversation with Mills and other front office members after the Mills/Perry press conference, Dolan gave off the impression that Mills and Perry would be safe if the team showed progress, as SNY reported. Just how Dolan defines progress is unclear. But if Fizdale is fired, it seems as if the Knicks would have to play much better under the interim coach for Mills and Perry to keep their jobs and have a chance to hire another coach in the offseason.