Carmelo Anthony desires a say in the Knicks‘ future personnel decisions, including the selection of the next head coach, Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com writes. “I think you have to. I think you have to have some type of input, whether it’s input or dialogue, whatever word that you want to use,” Anthony said. “I think you have to have that. I think at this point it needs to be some type of connection, some type of communication. Especially if we want to right this ship, there definitely needs to be some type of communication.” The small forward added that he hasn’t had any discussions with team president Phil Jackson or other members of the front office about who should coach the team next season, Begley notes.
Anthony expressed his appreciation for the job interim coach Kurt Rambis has done but offered no endorsement that Rambis remain in the post beyond this season, Begley adds. “I like Kurt,” Anthony said. “I thought he was kind of thrown into a tough situation with the firing of [Derek Fisher] and kind of gathering the troops, getting guys to play and finish the season up. As far as what’s going to happen this summer, this offseason and next year, who’s going to be in that spot, I have no idea. I haven’t had any conversations with anybody about that. I’m pretty sure they’ll address that when the offseason comes. I would love to have some type of input when it comes to that. But like I said, nobody has had a conversation about that yet.”
Here’s more from the Atlantic Division:
- Rambis, who is reportedly Jackson’s preferred choice to coach the Knicks in 2016/17, said he would relish the opportunity to have the interim tag removed from his title, Begley relays in the same piece. “It would be fantastic,” Rambis said. “I want to be a head coach in this league. This is a great franchise; it’s a terrific city, fan base. It would be a thrill beyond thrills in order to take this situation from where it was when we all first came here and turn it into a situation where it’s extremely promising and we have a chance to get in the playoffs and do well in the playoffs and get this city and this organization a potential championship. That’s a goal, and that would be a tremendous thrill.“
- Former Sixers GM Sam Hinkie was undone by bad luck in the NBA draft lottery, as the team failed to land the No. 1 overall pick during his tenure, which in turn led to some questionable selections, Rob Mahoney of SI.com writes. The former GM should get credit for sticking to his plan, one that ownership fully endorsed upon his hiring, Mahoney adds.
- Nets center Brook Lopez believes he and GM Sean Marks are on the same page, and Marks informed Lopez that he sees him as a building block and not as a trade chip, Brian Lewis of The New York Post writes. “He has talked to me, and we both definitely want to be here and see things happen here and help the team grow going forward,’’ Lopez said.
- The Celtics have assigned swingman James Young and power forward Jordan Mickey to their D-League affiliate, the team announced. This will be Young’s 13th trip to Maine and Mickey’s 14th.