Rumors had been flying that the New York Knicks would be ramping up their pursuit of former Lakers point guard Derek Fisher as their next head coach. Now it is just about official according to Bleacher Report’s Howard Beck:
Derek Fisher has decided to accept the Knicks' head coaching position, per source.
— Howard Beck (@HowardBeck) June 9, 2014
By taking this job, Fisher is basically announcing his retirement from the NBA as player-coaches are no longer allowed in the NBA. This crosses another name off the potential Lakers coaches list, though it was becoming apparent that the Lakers wouldn’t seriously pursue Fisher.
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After being spurned by Steve Kerr, Knicks President Phil Jackson seemed to immediately turn his attention to Fisher, his former point guard who won five championships under him with the Lakers. Jackson was even fined for talking about Fisher as a candidate despite Fisher still being an active player.
Fisher becomes the second player in two years to go immediately from active player to head coach, joining Jason Kidd who took the Brooklyn Nets head coach position immediately after retiring.
With a new head coach, Fisher’s staff is likely to include people with previous experience, and according to Beck, one name being thrown out is another former Laker who interviewed for the Lakers job:
Fisher's staff is very likely to include Kurt Rambis. Others in mix: Rick Fox, Luke Walton, Bill Cartwright.
— Howard Beck (@HowardBeck) June 9, 2014
With Fisher now set to go to New York, the Lakers and the Cleveland Cavaliers are the only teams remaining with head coaching voids.
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The team will continue to focus on experienced guys to fill their head coaching void. Byron Scott and Lionel Hollins still seem to be the favorites to land the job.
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