The New York Knicks want to hire Jason Kidd, ex-coach of the Milwaukee Bucks, and hope Kidd can leverage his relationship with Giannis ‘Greek Freak’ Antetokounmpo, and persuade him to sign a free-agent deal with the Knicks. The Knicks need to fill a vacant head coaching position and were granted permission by the Los Angeles Lakers to interview Kidd, who is currently an assistant coach with the team.
Kidd, the highest-paid assistant coach in the NBA, seemed like a stop-gap measure set up by the Lakers organization if head coach Frank Vogel didn’t see eye-to-eye with LeBron James. The Vogel experiment was working until the pandemic hit. The Lakers had the best record in the Western Conference, and the second-best record in the NBA behind the Bucks.
Kidd will be a hot commodity in the offseason, and he’s on the short-list of coaches the Knicks would love to have roaming the sidelines at Madison Square Garden.
NY KNICKS COACHING DESIRES
Jason Kidd
Mike Brown
Kenny Atkinson
Tom Thibodeau
Mike Woodson
But why would Kidd want to coach for one of the biggest jokes in American pro sports? And why would Kidd want to work for a loathsome owner like James Dolan?
Other coaches on the Knicks short-list include recently fired Nets head coach Kenny Atkinson, along with ex-Knicks head coach Mike Woodson, ex-Lakers coach Mike Brown, and former Timberwolves coach Tom Thibodeau.
The inept Knicks were 21-45 this season and not invited to the NBA restart. The Knicks won only one playoff series since 2000. They missed the playoffs for the seventh season in a row.
Jason Kidd, Knicks Hail Mary … Again
Once again, the future of the Knicks hinges upon a far-fetched, long shot that probably won’t happen. Remember when the Knicks tanked for the specific goal of acquiring Zion Williamson with the #1 pick in the NBA Draft? That plan didn’t work out.
Or how about the time the Knicks hired David Fizdale because he’s best buds with Kevin Durant, and the Knicks assumed that by hiring Fizdale, they’d automatically be able to sign KD? And if they snagged Durant, then Kyrie Irving would follow? Yup, how did that work out? The Brooklyn Nets signed Durant and Irving, while the Knicks shit-canned Fizdale.
With the Knicks’ luck, they’ll snatch up Kidd and Greek Freak will sign with another team like the Golden State Warriors instead. Just because Greek Freak played for Kidd years ago doesn’t mean he’ll automatically follow him to the bright lights of Broadway.
Kidd, one of the greatest passers in NBA history, played 19 seasons as a premier point guard with the Dallas Mavericks, New Jersey Nets, Phoenix Suns, and New York Knicks. Kidd ended his storied career with the Knicks in 2012-13
In case you’re wondering, Kidd hasn’t proven himself to be an awesome head coach. He struggled with a 183-190 record and posted only one winning record in five seasons as a coach (one with Brooklyn in 2013-14 and 3.5 seasons with the Bucks between 2014 and 2018 before he was let go mid-season).
