Longtime Phil Jackson assistant Frank Hambien says he would gladly work for the Zen Master again, writes Al Iannazzone of Newsday. “Absolutely,” Hamblen said when asked of the possibility. “I’m bored to death..Opportunity is an amazing thing. I know Phil was sitting in Playa Del Rey bored to death, itching to get back in. I don’t know if he’ll even call. I don’t know what’s going through his mind. But he has my number.” Hambien also gave a strong endorsement for Kerr as a possible coach of the Knicks. More from NYC..
- Steve Kerr says that he met with Jackson on Friday to discuss the Knicks‘ head coaching vacancy and publicly stated his interest in the job, tweets Peter Botte of the New York Daily News. Kerr went on to say that there will be future meetings between himself and his former coach. The former guard turned TNT analyst has long been believed to be the frontrunner for the Knicks’ job.
- “We share a lot of the same philosophies,” Kerr said when asked about Jackson’s triangle, according to Barbara Barker of Newsday. “I learned a lot of my basketball from him and Tex Winter. It is safe to say that we have a lot of the same ideas . . . Obviously, there’s a strong connection between us and our beliefs.“
- Joe Johnson‘s contract was an albatross with the Hawks but he has transformed himself to the Nets‘ most consistent player, writes Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News. Tonight wasn’t a shining example of that, however, as Johnson went 2-7 for 7 points across 42 minutes of play.