Report: Knicks President Steve Mills on Hot Seat After David Fizdale Firing
New York Knicks President Steve Mills' job is reportedly in jeopardy following Friday's firing of head coach David Fizdale.
According to Frank Isola of The Athletic, sources believe Mills will either be reassigned or fired because of the Knicks' struggles during his tenure. Isola added that Knicks owner James Dolan is expected to attempt to lure Toronto Raptors President Masai Ujiri to the Big Apple once again.
At 4-18, the Knicks own the worst record in the NBA, and they will almost certainly miss the playoffs for the seventh consecutive season.
In 2013, Mills was hired as the executive vice president and general manager of the Knicks. Following the departure of team president Phil Jackson, Mills was elevated to the role and Scott Perry was hired as general manager in 2017.
The Knicks have not had a winning record nor have they made the playoffs during Mills' tenure. They are also on pace to win fewer than 20 games for the second consecutive season and the third time overall since Mills was initially hired as GM.
There was some level of optimism surrounding the Knicks entering the 2019-20 season since Fizdale was set to begin his second year as head coach and several moves were made in free agency.
New York failed to land any of the big fish available, such as Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving or Kevin Durant, so Mills, Perry and Co. instead decided to hand out multiple short-term contracts in order to open the salary cap space back up in the near future.
The Knicks signed guards Elfrid Payton, Wayne Ellington and Reggie Bullock, and forwards Julius Randle, Marcus Morris, Bobby Portis and Taj Gibson.
While Morris and Randle have both been productive, most of the signings have not worked out as hoped. Also, New York's young players have not developed as quickly as many expected.
RJ Barrett is enjoying a solid rookie year with 14.4 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game, but 2018 draft picks Kevin Knox and Mitchell Robinson, and 2017 first-round pick Frank Ntilikina are all averaging less than nine points per game.
With most of New York's young core failing to develop at an acceptable pace and the pieces assembled by the front office not fitting together properly, it seems like a foregone conclusion that someone will lose their job.
Perhaps Perry will receive the benefit of the doubt since he has only been in his role for two years, but with the Knicks playing mediocre basketball throughout Mills' tenure, keeping him in an important position any longer may be a tough sell to Knicks fans.
