The New York Knicks have made a decision on their head coach, and it’s former Utah Jazz great Jeff Hornacek.
Time to exhale New York Knicks fans. It’s won’t be Kurt Rambis leading your team in 2016-17.Howard Beck of Bleacher Report had it first as reported the Knicks have hired former Phoenix Suns head coach Jeff Hornacek to the same position.
This one really came out of left field. Hornacek had been linked to the Houston Rockets and the Sacramento Kings, but not the Knicks. Not until Monday anyway.
Hornacek’s name first came up as a candidate when Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News reported that the former Utah Jazz sharpshooter had interviewed for the job.
He wasn’t thought to be a serious contender, although Bondy also reported that Phil Jackson once coveted Hornacek as a player.
Breaking: Knicks will hire Jeff Hornacek as head coach, per NBA source.
— Howard Beck (@HowardBeck) May 18, 2016
Phil Jackson coveted Jeff Hornacek as a player and was openly disappointed when the Bulls failed to acquire him at '94 trade deadline.
— Stefan Bondy (@SBondyNYDN) May 16, 2016
Hornacek instead went the Jazz, the Bulls picked up Ron Harper and the rest is history.
— Stefan Bondy (@SBondyNYDN) May 16, 2016
If anything this proved that Jackson had a high opinion of Hornacek the player but we had no idea what his thoughts were of Hornacek the coach.
Apparently the interview went well because Jackson has put a tremendous amount of faith in Hornacek. His first hire already failed miserably. If this one goes south it will be the end of his career in New York.
