The New York Knicks coaching options have dwindled down over the past few weeks. Potential hires like Tom Thibodeau, Luke Walton, and Scott Brooks have all found jobs outside of the Big Apple. The Knicks are one of four teams along with Houston, Sacramento, and Indiana who have yet to name a permanent head coach for the 2016-17 season. Fans have been shouting for Phil Jackson to hire hometown heroes Mark Jackson, Jeff Van Gundy, or Patrick Ewing. When it comes down to it though, there are only three realistic New York Knicks coaching options.
Realistic New York Knicks Coaching Options
Frank Vogel
Frank Vogel has spent the last five and a half seasons coaching the Indiana Pacers. He was hired roughly halfway through the 2010-11 season. Vogel has taken the Pacers to the playoffs in five of his six seasons with the team, including back-to-back trips to the Eastern Conference Finals. Unsurprisingly, the one year during his tenure that they did not make the playoffs was the year that Paul George missed almost the entire season with a broken leg.
In 431 regular season games, the 43 year-old coach has 250 wins and 181 losses. This has resulted in a winning percentage of .580. On the other hand, Vogel’s teams have had less success in the playoffs. They are only one game over the .500 mark including being knocked out of the first round of this year’s playoffs. This may be one of the main reasons that Larry Bird has not renewed Vogel’s contract. If the Pacers decide to go in a different direction, then it would be smart of Phil Jackson to bring Vogel aboard.
David Blatt
The next realistic Knicks coaching option has also taken a team to the conference finals. David Blatt has only been a head coach in the NBA for a year and a half. But in that short time, he experienced success with the Cleveland Cavaliers. In his first season, Blatt finished with 53 wins and 29 losses. His team made it to the NBA Finals before losing to the Golden State Warriors. He started off his second season with a record of 30-11 before being let go in favor of his assistant, Tyronn Lue. Rumor was that Blatt lost his locker room, most notably superstar LeBron James, and that is why he was let go.
The 56-year-old Blatt was a very successful coach overseas before coming over to the States. He also has ties to the New York organization. He and Knicks General Manager Steve Mills were teammates at Princeton University. If the Knicks are unable to obtain Vogel’s services, then Blatt is the next logical option.
Kurt Rambis
The last realistic Knicks coaching option is the most decorated one – just not as a head coach. Kurt Rambis has eight championship rings. The problem is that they came as a player and assistant coach with the Los Angeles Lakers. Since becoming a head coach, he has not been very successful. The 58-year-old coach has a career coaching record of 65 wins and 164 losses. That includes a 9-19 record as the interim head coach last season for the Knicks. He was promoted to that position after Derek Fisher was fired, having started the year 23-31.
Rambis is considered the front-runner for the position due to his knowledge and willingness to run the triangle offense. It also does not hurt that he is very close friends with Phil Jackson. Another thing Rambis has going for him is stability for New York’s prized youngster Kristaps Porzingis. If another coach was hired, he would be the third coach in only Porzingis’s second season. In the end though, if the Knicks want to attract free agents and turn this franchise around, then the chosen coach must be one with a winning pedigree. Unfortunately for Rambis, that is not him.
