NY Knicks: 5 Defensive-Minded Assistant Coaches Mike D'Antoni Must Consider
The tribe has spoken. The vast majority of New York Knicks diehards have been calling for Mike D’Antoni’s dismissal practically since his baptism as New York’s head coach. It’s the same old story.
Year after year, no matter who D’Antoni’s coaching, detractors say he’ll never win a title if he chooses to ignore defense and solely banks on piling up enough points to win. Well aware of the arguments against him, D’Antoni remains stuck in his ways, refusing to alter the system he’s built a moderately successful career on.
When D’Antoni was with the Phoenix Suns organization in 2007, then general manager Steve Kerr suggested he hire defensive guru Tom Thibodeau. Whether he was in denial or just plain stubborn, D’Antoni wanted no part of it.
Thibodeau ended up as an assistant with the Boston Celtics, and the rest is history. The Celtics won the championship that same season. Two years later, Thibodeau was hired to coach the Chicago Bulls and led them to the best record in the league and the Eastern Conference finals. To put the icing on the cake, he also took home 2011 NBA Coach of the Year.
Whether he likes it or not, in order to stay competitive in a stacked Eastern Conference, New York could feasibly bring in a defense-oriented coach to whisper in D’Antoni’s ear. Since D’Antoni will be in the final year of his contract next season, there won’t be much room for negotiation unless he intends to alienate Knicks management and forgo a contract extension.
If the Knicks are ever to reclaim the magic of the early ‘70s mini-dynasty, defense must play a greater role in the staff’s overall game plan. Here are five possible coaching additions that fit the bill.
Lawrence Frank
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Seven years ago, Lawrence Frank replaced Byron Scott midseason as head coach of the New Jersey Nets. The common response to this news was most likely, “Who is this guy?” Coming off two consecutive NBA Finals appearances, the Nets were playing uninspired ball until Frank took over.
At just 33, Frank became the youngest head coach in professional sports, but he was wise beyond his years in terms of basketball IQ. Encouraging his players to work hard on defense, crash the boards and distribute the ball, the Nets won an unbelievable 13 straight games and returned to form as a team primed to make another run at the title.
New Jersey finished the 2003-04 season 25-15 under Frank and lost in the conference semifinals. The following three seasons, Frank guided the team to records of .500 or better and made it to the postseason each time. However, they never reached any further than the semifinals.
From 2007 to 2009, the Nets won less than half their games. Then came 2009-10, when New Jersey threatened to set a new mark for most losses in an NBA season. Management had seen enough, as the team went winless in its first 16 games, and Frank was fired.
Following in Tom Thibodeau’s footsteps, Frank signed a one-year contract to be Doc Rivers’ assistant in Boston during the 2010-11 campaign. Without skipping a beat, the Celtics were stellar on defense as usual, and Frank had positioned himself to get first dibs on upcoming head coaching vacancies.
Recently, the Houston Rockets interviewed Frank and Hall of Famer Kevin McHale as the final candidates to replace coach Rick Adelman, but they chose to go with McHale in the end.
If Frank does not re-sign with Boston, he may be available to return to the tri-state area.
Kurt Rambis
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Kurt Rambis is probably best known for being on the receiving end of a Kevin McHale clothesline as he went up for a layup in the 1984 NBA Finals.
He was a scrappy, physical player who served primarily as a sub over the course of his 14-year career. His best memories were with the Los Angeles Lakers, where Rambis spent his first seven seasons as a contributor to four world championships.
After retiring as a Laker in 1995, Rambis returned to L.A. in 1999 to take a job in the front office. When head coach Del Harris was relieved of his duties that same year, Rambis took over for the remainder of the strike-shortened season.
Compiling a 23-14 record after a 9-0 start, Rambis led the Lakers to the Western Conference semifinals where they were swept by the eventual champion San Antonio Spurs. He resumed his behind-the-scenes duties until 2001.
Rambis rejoined the Lakers coaching staff as an assistant in 2001 and was the defensive mastermind who complemented head coach Phil Jackson and his triangle offense. During his seven seasons as Jackson’s right-hand man, Rambis won two rings and helped L.A. get to the Finals on four occasions.
Rambis parted ways with the Lakers in 2009 to take over the reins of the rebuilding Minnesota Timberwolves. After two horrendous seasons at the helm in Minnesota, he has only managed to win 32 games combined and concluded the 2010-11 season with a league-worst 17-65 record.
Only improving upon his first season by two victories, it’s highly plausible that Rambis’ four-year deal may be cut short. It appears he’s had trouble gaining the respect of his roster and has also made some terrible decisions (e.g. playing double-double machine Kevin Love under 29 minutes a game two seasons ago).
Some coaches just aren’t meant for running a team, and Rambis may be one of them. If the Timberwolves decide on a buyout with Rambis prior to next season, New York can place him back in a position he’s more comfortable with.
Ron Adams
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Outside of coaching circles, Ron Adams is a relative unknown. Since 1992, Adams has bounced around the league as an assistant to the San Antonio Spurs, Philadelphia 76ers, Portland Trail Blazers, Milwaukee Bucks, Oklahoma City Thunder, and currently, he’s on his second stint with the Chicago Bulls.
Highly regarded by coaches and players alike, Adams is known for his ability to develop players and turn poor defensive teams into respectable ones.
Prior to joining the NBA ranks, Adams got his start as an assistant to Boyd Grant at Fresno State University. It was there that he honed his defensive craft.
Under Adams’ tutelage, the Bulldogs were the top defense among Division I men’s basketball programs four times and second-best twice. Considering he only spent eight years as Fresno State’s defensive strategist, that’s quite an accomplishment.
Former NBA head coach John Lucas has worked closely with Adams over the years, and he believes Adams has built a reputation for turning young, defensively deficient teams into winners.
Before Adams arrived in Oklahoma City in 2008, the Thunder were 4-30. With Adams in the fold, the team went 19-29 to finish 23-59. The following year, the combination of Adams and head coach Scott Brooks contributed to a 50-32 record—one of the greatest single-season turnarounds in NBA history.
The Bulls obviously value Adams enough to bring him back for another go-round after they made the playoffs all three years of his first assignment in Chicago. However, given Adams’ propensity to quickly jump ship to lend his knowledge to another franchise, the Knicks, who are also youthful and lacking on the defensive side, may be able to entice him.
Jeff Van Gundy
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When you’re a lifelong Knicks fan, it’s hard not to ponder Jeff Van Gundy coming back to coach at the Garden. Besides, he has unfinished business in New York given his startling resignation announcement a mere 19 games into the 2001-02 season.
Although rather brief, Van Gundy has an excellent coaching resume. In five full seasons with the Knicks, New York earned postseason berths five times, including a trip to the NBA Finals in 1999 as an eighth seed. Van Gundy is the only NBA coach ever to lead the lowest seed to the championship series.
Van Gundy ranks third all-time among Knicks coaches in wins and holds a career .590 winning percentage, trailing only Pat Riley.
After walking away from the game for almost two years, Van Gundy resurfaced in 2003 to replace the legendary Rudy Tomjanovich as head coach of the Houston Rockets. Van Gundy spent four seasons in Houston and guided them to the playoffs in three of them, but the Rockets never made it past the first round.
Throughout his coaching tenure, Van Gundy has always preached defense, and his actions speak louder than words.
With a cast of intimidators that included the likes of Patrick Ewing, Charles Oakley, Larry Johnson, Marcus Camby and Latrell Sprewell, Van Gundy always held the opposition in check. During a five-year stretch, the Knicks were first in opponent shooting percentage and second in points allowed with Van Gundy pulling the strings.
When Van Gundy moved on to Houston, the Rockets gained notoriety as one of the premier defensive teams in the league. In a matchup against the Utah Jazz in 2004, Houston set a team record by limiting the Jazz to just 63 points.
Lately, Van Gundy seems rather content in the ESPN broadcast booth sandwiched by Mike Breen and Mark Jackson, so a coaching comeback is probably not the first thing on his mind. Taking into account his decade of NBA head coaching success, it may also be wishful thinking that Van Gundy would stoop to an assistant position. But, the man is still adored by Knicks faithful, and there’s always the possibility he could dethrone Mike D’Antoni.
Larry Brown
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Another ex-Knick, Larry Brown’s lone season coaching in New York was tumultuous, and that’s putting it nicely. Believed to be the savior of a storied franchise in the midst of four straight losing seasons, Brown was hired in 2005, fresh off two consecutive NBA Finals appearances with the Detroit Pistons.
This was supposed to be a dream job for Brown, who was born in Brooklyn, but things didn’t exactly go as planned.
The soap opera of bickering between Brown and star point guard Stephon Marbury played out publicly with the media acting as the mediator. It was slightly reminiscent of the New York Yankees “Bronx Zoo” era when Reggie Jackson and manager Billy Martin often resorted to taking shots at one another via the newspaper sports columns.
Despite having talent at his disposal such as the aforementioned Marbury, Steve Francis, Jamal Crawford, Eddy Curry, Anfernee Hardaway, Jalen Rose, David Lee and Channing Frye, Brown was never able to establish a steady rotation; he used over 40 different combinations throughout the year.
Ultimately, the Knicks wrapped up the 2005-06 campaign at 23-59—a .280 winning percentage and the worst season in franchise history. Despite a five-year deal worth somewhere in the $50-60 million range, making him the highest paid coach in league history, Brown was fired after a single season once he refused to accept a buyout. He still laughed all the way to the bank with an $18.5 million settlement.
As bad as it was, that’s just a tiny blemish on one of the greatest coaching careers ever in professional basketball. Currently, the Hall of Famer sits sixth all-time in regular season wins at 1,098 and fourth on the list with 100 playoff victories. He led the Philadelphia 76ers (once) and the Detroit Pistons (twice) to the NBA Finals, winning it all in 2004 with Detroit.
Brown made a habit of success coaching teams without a lot of offensive firepower. Instead, his teams were mentally and physically tough and excelled on the defensive side.
Returning to the NBA to coach the Charlotte Bobcats in 2008, again Brown took a team with minimal offensive talent and had them playoff-bound in his second year. After a disappointing 9-19 start to the 2010-11 season, Brown and team owner Michael Jordan mutually agreed Brown should step down, citing the team’s minimal effort and ineffectiveness under the current coach as reason for change.
Shortly after the abrupt departure, Brown’s agent made it clear the 70-year-old still has a desire to coach somewhere. With all the turmoil surrounding Brown as a high-profile head coach of late, maybe he should entertain a lesser role as an assistant. Considering his history of health issues, it might not be a bad idea to assume a position with a lower amount of stress as he gets up in age.
While Knicks owner James Dolan would just as soon trade Carmelo Anthony rather than rehire Brown in any capacity, everyone deserves a second chance. However, given the fallout between both parties, a reunion is highly unlikely.
