Knicks Rumors: NY Hesitant to Fire David Fizdale Without Good Interim Options

David Fizdale has been on the hot seat since the start of the 2019-20 season, but the New York Knicks might not fire him without having a good option to replace him, according to Marc Berman of the New York Post.

"Sources indicated the major deterrent to making a change at Thanksgiving was the sketchy alternative of promoting one of the assistants—Jud Buechler, Keith Smart or Kaleb Canales," Berman wrote.

The Knicks are 4-11 in Fizdale's second season as a coach. The squad had a 17-65 record in 2018-19.

New York made improvements to the roster this offseason by signing players like Julius Randle, Marcus Morris and more while adding RJ Barrett through the draft to raise expectations for this year.

This put pressure on Fizdale, which was seen in a press conference featuring president Steve Mills and general manager Scott Perry following the team's 2-8 start.

"Obviously, Scott and I are not happy with where we are right now," Mills said earlier this month, per Greg Joyce of the New York Post. "We think the team is not performing to the level that we anticipated or we expected to perform at, and that's something that we think we collectively have to do a better job of delivering the product on the floor that we said we would do at the start of this season."

Adrian Wojnarowski and Malika Andrews of ESPN later reported the team's brass intended to make Fizdale the "fall guy" while laying the groundwork for him to be eventually fired.

The Knicks have improved slightly—2-2 over the last four games—but it seems the real reason a move hasn't been made is a lack of alternatives.

Smart is by far the most experienced coach on the staff with experience leading three different organizations, including two seasons as a full-time head coach. He has a 93-170 career record with the Kings, Warriors and Cavaliers. 

Canales has also been an interim coach at the NBA level, heading the Portland Trail Blazers for 23 games in 2011-12.

Still, the Knicks don't feel either of them is an improvement over Fizdale.