NBA News: Knicks Reportedly Hire Jeff Hornacek As New Head Coach
Jeff Swinger-USA TODAY Sports
After months of uncertainty following the firing of head coach Derek Fisher, the New York Knicks have finally made a decision about who will coach the team moving forward. Although the Knicks were linked to all the big-name candidates available on the open market, New York made a move that took everyone by surprise on Wednesday.
According to Ian Begley of ESPN, Jeff Hornacek, formerly of the Phoenix Suns, will be the new head coach of the Knicks:
Jeff Hornacek will be the new coach of the New York Knicks, league sources confirmed to ESPN’s Ian Begley.
The Knicks made no announcement Wednesday night, but sources involved with the situation said a deal is expected soon.
Over the past few weeks, it has seemed as though Phil Jackson was in no hurry to start an extensive coaching search. Jackson even went on vacation recently leaving many Knicks fans disgruntled considering the fact many other teams around the league were hiring the best candidates available for the coaching position in New York.
The first domino to fall recently was Tom Thibodeau with the former Chicago Bulls coach agreeing to become team president and head coach of the Minnesota Timberwolves. Scott Brooks followed shortly after by being hired by the Washington Wizards and then perhaps the biggest blow to the Knicks was Luke Walton deciding to re-join the Los Angeles Lakers to replace Byron Scott.
Along with these prominent names mentioned, David Blatt and Frank Vogel were the two biggest names left available in the team’s coaching search, but Hornacek appears to have left an impression on Jackson with the two sides coming to an agreement.
Hornacek’s short time in Phoenix was forgettable, to say the least. The 53-year-old coached the Suns for a little over two seasons with the team getting progressively worse every year. Phoenix went from 48-34 to 39-43 in Hornacek’s first two years before plummetting to 14-35 this season leading to his firing just beyond the half way point.
