The coaching carousel could be entering the home stretch, which is good if you’re a Knick fan and you’re tired of your team being coachless.
Mike D’Antoni is still waiting for the Knicks or Bulls to make him a formal offer, a person with knowledge of the situation told Newsday this afternoon. That means the Mavericks will be the first team on the hunt for a coach to fill its position, and the dominoes will fall from there.
A person familiar with Rick Carlisle’s situation said negotiations with Dallas “should be wrapped up by late tomorrow or early Friday.” It is believed that the Suns want D’Antoni to advise them of his future plans no later than Friday as well.
Here’s my take on D’Antoni’s situation:
The Knicks and Bulls are both interested, but they’re also wary of being used as leverage against each other. Donnie Walsh and John Paxson would be wise to pin D’Antoni down on which job he wants – most people believe he covets the Bulls’ job – before entering negotiations.
Here’s the problem: As a talented coach free to choose his next job, D’Antoni is under no obligation to bid against himself. At some point between now and Friday, the other shoe will drop. D’Antoni will either agree to begin negotiating with Chicago or New York, or force the teams’ hands by inviting both parties to make him an offer. Interesting game of chess.
The odd man out could be Avery Johnson, who is reported to be out of the picture in Chicago and Phoenix. Johnson is working with agent Joe Glass, who also represents Larry Brown. Johnson might be wise to allow the other chess pieces to move around the board and then evaluate his options. More jobs could open up between now and the draft lottery, and if none of them appeals to AJ, his stock would only rise if he sat out a year.
The coaching carousel in the NBA never really stops spinning.