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Both the Knicks and the Nets have head coaching vacancies. And between the two open spots, Stan Van Gundy – a big-name coach on the market – says the more attractive gig is the one in Brooklyn. And it’s not even close. “Of the two the Nets are the better job. There’s no question about …
Both the Knicks and the Nets have head coaching vacancies. And between the two open spots, Stan Van Gundy – a big-name coach on the market – says the more attractive gig is the one in Brooklyn.
And it’s not even close.
“Of the two the Nets are the better job. There’s no question about that right now,” Van Gundy said on ESPN Radio. “The organization has been more stable. They’ve won more games. They have more talent.”
The Nets were 30-34 when the NBA season was suspended because of the coronavirus pandemic, sitting seventh in the Eastern Conference and on pace for a first-round playoff date with Toronto. The Knicks were 21-45 and bound for the lottery. But the talent gap is far greater than that.
The Knicks have a young formative roster that will need RJ Barrett and Mitchell Robinson to emerge. They haven’t been to the postseason since 2012-13, and have won just a single playoff series since 2000.
After Brooklyn made the playoffs last year, it landed Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. Durant has sat out all season rehabbing a ruptured Achilles, and Irving made just 20 appearances in a campaign cut short by shoulder surgery. Both stars are expected back next season, for whatever lucky coach gets that job.
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Brooklyn parted ways with Kenny Atkinson on March 7, with Jacque Vaughn going 2-0 since being named interim. Meanwhile the Knicks fired David Fizdale on Dec. 6, with Mike Miller steering the ship since.
The Knicks pay well, and coaching in the Garden is perceived as a glamour job. But would Van Gundy want it?
He demurred when asked on ESPN Radio, saying there could be familial complications anyway.
“I’m not interested in the New York Knicks. No,” Stan Van Gundy said. “First of all, there’s a family history there. If anyone would be interested in that — and I’m not sure he is either — it would be my brother.”
That would of course by his younger brother Jeff, who led the Knicks to the 1999 NBA Finals and spent parts of seven seasons as head coach in the Garden. He’s 430-318 overall.
Stan’s resume is similarly impressive. He was 523-384 in a dozen seasons as head coach for Miami, Orlando and Detroit. He led the Magic to the 2009 NBA Finals, and – like his younger brother – has been working as a TV analyst (first ESPN, now Turner) since being let go by the Pistons two years ago.
Vaughn, Ty Lue and Mark Jackson — or even assistants like Phil Handy or Adam Harrington — are seen as more likely coaching candidates in Brooklyn.
Across the East River, Jeff might be perceived as more likely to make a Garden return than Stan.
“And I just – I’ve said this – I’m different than a lot of coaches in looking at jobs. To me, it’s all who you work for and you work with,” said Stan, the older Van Gundy brother. “Everything I’ve seen in the last few years with that organization says that it’s extremely dysfunctional.”
Since Jeff quit during the 2001-02 season, a dozen head coaches have tried their hand in that dysfunction. At least one Van Gundy has no interest in being (what he assumes would be an unlucky) No. 13.
