Leon Rose Hopes Knicks Will Have Decision on Head Coach by End of July

The New York Knicks won't be among the 22 teams venturing to Orlando, Florida, for the NBA's restart on July 31, but they'll be doing their best to grab their own headlines around that time.

Team president Leon Rose says he hopes to make a decision on the Knicks' new head coach by the end of July. The news came during an interview with the club's play-by-play announcer Mike Breen on MSG Network.

While former Chicago Bulls and Minnesota Timberwolves coach Tom Thibodeau has long been considered the front-runner for the position, the Knicks have increasingly broadened their candidate pool.

Recently, Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium reported the team was interviewing Golden State Warriors assistant and former Cleveland Cavaliers coach Mike Brown. That would add him to a list of former Brooklyn Nets coach Kenny Atkinson, Mike Woodson, Jason Kidd, Ime Udoka, Will Hardy, Pat Delany, Jamahl Mosley, Chris Fleming and the Knicks interim coach Mike Miller, per ProBasketballTalk's Dan Feldman.

"It's very exciting," Rose said. "There's a lot of really great candidates. ... We're looking at a lot of different people with a lot of different mindsets, philosophies, and for me personally, this is educational. I need to make sure that we go through this process and dot every 'i' and cross every 't' to make the right decision."

No doubt one of the biggest factors in choosing a head coach is finding a leader who can help the Knicks attract the type of marquee free agents fans have long sought after.

In one of the biggest blows to the club's standing recently, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant chose to team up with the Nets rather than the Knicks last offseason with the Knicks serving as an afterthought.

Thibodeau could help there, as he's coached a number of stars including Derrick Rose, Jimmy Butler, Joakim Noah, Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins.

While Thibodeau's results have varied, his hard-nosed style of play with an emphasis on defense can help the team make quick gains while it looks to restock its roster with talent. New York went 21-45 during a pandemic-shortened season with forward Julius Randle (19.5 points per game) serving as the team's leading scorer.

Rose has a long road ahead of him as he works to turn the Knicks into a contender. His first big decision with the club will set the course that gets them there.