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Frat to Coach the Knicks!
I am excited about this!
Lenny Wilkens Announced as Knicks Head Coach
by Tom Kertes
NEW YORK, January 14, 2004 -- At a jam-packed press conference immediately preceding the Knicks matchup against the Orlando Magic, Knicks President of Basketball Operations Isiah Thomas announced that Coach Don Chaney, along with assistant coaches Brendan Malone and Lon Kruger, have been relieved of their duties. "Assistant coach Herb Williams will coach the game tonight," said Thomas. "And tomorrow we will announce our new head coach, Lenny Wilkens."
"This is not a very pleasant night," said Thomas. "I know how difficult this is from once being on the receiving end. Don Chaney is a good man, he gave the Knicks his best. Brendan and Lon are quality guys. But, after evaluating the team and the coaching staff, it seemed to be the right time, and the right opportunity, to hire someone such as Lenny Wilkens."
Wilkens, a native New Yorker from Brooklyn, is the winningest coach in NBA history, racking up an amazing 1,292 victories over a 30-year career with Seattle, Portland, Cleveland, Atlanta, and Toronto. He was NBA Coach of the Year in 1994 and was named one of the Top Ten Coaches in NBA History in 1996. As a nine-time All-Star point guard, he was also named One of The 50 Greatest Players in NBA History.
"Lenny is, of course, a Hall of Fame coach and a Hall Of Fame player, one of the very few people who ever accomplished that," said Thomas. "He just seems like the perfect fit. He coached Gus Williams and Mark Price, he's had success with guards, he's a natural. The tempo we want to play at, plus Lenny's relationship with Stephon Marbury, were important factors. As far as having his maturity and intellectual knowledge around the team at this point in time, it was very important as well."
Thomas, who said that the final decision was made "this afternoon", admitted that he had a number of coaching candidates under consideration, including himself. "But, at the end of the day, I felt that Lenny would be the better choice." Thomas also talked to the legendary Hall of Fame coach Chuck Daly -- his own mentor on the two-time World Champion "Bad Boys" Detroit Pistons -- and former-Atlanta coach and current TNT analyst Mike Fratello. Fratello, in fact, was strongly rumored in the media all day as the leading candidate for the job. "There was no offer made to Mike Fratello," Thomas said. "In the end, we couldn't pass up an opportunity to get a coach of the caliber of Lenny Wilkens."
As to how the Knicks players might respond to all the recent changes, "I expect our players to be resilient and to be professional," Thomas said. "I expect them to come out and perform at a very high level. This is a performance business. You don't get rewarded for your behavior, you get rewarded for wins and losses."
The low-keyed Wilkens' demeanor is actually highly reminscent of Chaney's. "I consider that a positive," Thomas said. "Both men are gentlemen, they're class men. And our guys in the lockerroom are classy guys. You don't need to have a fiery outward disposition to be a highly competitive person."
Wilkens, of course, have had tremendous success -- but his last couple of Toronto teams were viewed as underachievers. "We looked at that -- but it was never a matter of his coaching abilities," Thomas said. "His knowledge is unquestioned. He just had injuries. You lose Vince Carter on that Toronto team, you're not going to win many games. No NBA team can afford to lose its star player."
According to Thomas, Wilkens will bring in his own people to fill out his coaching staff. "After taking a look at everyone, including our own people, he'll decide," said Thomas. "He's not here as an interim coach. We are extremely fortunate to get a man such as Lenny Wilkens, the winningest coach in basketball."
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Lenny Wilkens
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