EWING NOT THE MAN?

Patrick Ewing would at least like an interview for the Knicks head coaching vacancy. Apparently, Donnie Walsh doesn't seem inclined to give him one anytime soon. Of course, this could just be because Ewing's current team, the Orlando Magic, is still playing in the playoffs. It's generally assumed that if/when Mark Jackson is announced as the next head coach, Ewing will be one of the first assistants that Jax hires.

WALSH OBSESSED WITH BROADCASTERS?

Kenny Smith appears to be one of many general manager candidates that Donnie Walsh will interview, after he's finished his search for a coach. Smith has a lot in common with Walsh and apparent-head-coach Mark Jackson. Like both, Smith is a New York native. Smith and Walsh are graduates of North Carolina. Smith and Jackson have been broadcasting since their playing days have ended, gaining no experience in the respective job fields that they will be interviewing for. Smith already has ties to the Knicks. He has been a part-time analyst on the MSG in recent years, and is very close with Garden president Steve Mills.

The Knicks' GM position is currently held by Glen Grunwald, who was hired by Isiah Thomas. Former Sixers GM Billy King and former Pistons/Sonics GM Rick Sund are both expected to meet with Walsh as well, who is not ruling out retaining Grunwald. It would seem that Grunwald and the rest of the scouting department figure to remain in place at least until the draft in June.

ON THE CLOCK

With the NFL Draft being held today at Radio City Music Hall, I thought this would be a good time to remind everyone of the upcoming NBA Draft dates:

April 27th: Underclassmen Draft Entry Deadline
May 20th: Draft Lottery Drawing
June 16th: Underclassmen Draft Withdrawal Deadline
June 26th: NBA Draft

DESERT-BOUND WALSH, GARDEN-BOUND JAX?

Alan Hahn of New York Newsday & Frank Isola of the New York Post seem to be "confirming" that Walsh has indeed flown to Phoenix to meet with Mark Jackson.

WALSH ON THE PROWL

Apparently, Walsh didn't meet with Mark Jackson in New York yesterday. He did, however, fly out of town to meet with what seems to be his only head-coaching candidate. Jackson could have either been home in Los Angeles, or in Phoenix preparing to broadcast tonight's Suns-Spurs game. The fact that it's Walsh on a plane headed toward Jackson, instead of the other way around, makes me expect an announcement this weekend of a press conference early next week.

ACTION WITH JACKSON

Donnie Walsh is expected to meet with Mark Jackson face-to-face today, even though they spoke to each other briefly over the phone last week. This doesn't necessarily mean Jackson will be announced as the Knicks next head coach anytime soon though. Walsh has indicated that he's willing to be patient, presumably so he can see how other candidates compare to his leading man. Some names in the mix include: Boston assistant Tom Thibodeau, Sacramento assistant Chuck Person, and possibly Detroit's head man Flip Saunders, Dallas' Avery Johnson, or Toronto's Sam Mitchell. The last three would only be available if they're fired due to early playoff exits.

Walsh seems set on Jackson, but may want to interview a number of people just to make sure his instincts are correct.

HELP WANTED: HEAD COACH

With Scott Skiles taking the Bucks' job, the list of candidates for Donnie Walsh to hire has shrunk. First to get an official interview will be long time assistant coach, and former Knicks player, Herb Williams. Williams signed with the New York Knicks on November 15, 1992 as a free agent. The 6’11” center out of Ohio State spent seven seasons with the team and was a part of two Eastern Conference Championship teams (1994 and 1999). He played in 278 games with the Knicks, including 50 playoff games and two NBA Finals, and was always a fan favorite at the Garden. Herb returned to the Knicks in 2001 as an assistant coach and has been here the past three years. He had his sole opportunity to coach for the Knicks on January 14, 2004. The team defeated the Orlando Magic 120-110, giving Williams a 1-0 career coaching record. He's been here from Pat Riley, through Isiah Thomas, and everything in between. No matter who's brought in as the next head coach, Herb deserves and has earned the right to be here for the good times.

Walsh held a conference call with reporters today to address the coaching situation: here's the transcript.

Mark Jackson still seems to be the leading candidate for the job.

ISIAH'S BANISHMENT

Due to his "reassignment agreement" with Donnie Walsh, Isiah Thomas is not allowed to have ANY contact with anyone involved with the team itself. Good news for the players, and incoming head coach. It's hard to tell if Walsh is having his strings pulled by Dolan, or if he actually kept Thomas within the organization for a good reason. Maybe Donnie/Jim didn't want to give Isiah his paycheck just to have him spill the beans about the ugly ongoings behind closed doors?

END OF AN ERA (FINALLY!)

Donnie Walsh has finally done what Jim Dolan should have done months ago, remove Isiah Thomas from his head coaching position. The bad news, Thomas will still be employed by Dolan and the Knicks in some sort of untitled advisory role. However, Walsh said during his conference-call announcement that Thomas will not be charge of the draft as was speculated. Even though Walsh did say "I will be in contact with Isiah a lot, I value Isiah's knowledge of the game and I value his opinion so I would use him as a resource". He later mentioned, "There will be nobody reporting to Isiah." Thomas will report to Walsh directly.

To me, this sounds like Walsh was just being polite publicly. Thomas has been fired without receiving a pink-slip. Even if he had been outright fired, Dolan would still owe him the full amount of his contract. Thomas would also be able to try and find another job elsewhere (insert gut-busting laughter here) and collect both paychecks, move on from this disgrace (Larry Brown), rebuild his reputation, etc. With Zeke still "employed" by the Knicks, it seems more like he's been fittingly banished to purgatory.

Getting rid if Isiah was the easy part for Walsh. Picking a new coach before June's draft will be the hard part. Mention Mark Jackson to Walsh, and you can hear the excitement in his voice when he says, "I know he's one of the smartest guys who ever played for us at Indiana. He's always been a guy I think who could make a really fine head coach."

With the team going into rebuilding mode for the next couple of years, this is the perfect time to bring in a coach with no prior expierence. Let Jackson learn on the job. If he proves he's a quality coach, great. If not, replace him when we're in a position to contend after gaining cap-space (D-Wade). It's not like Jackson can do any worse than Thomas did.

NIGHTMARE COME TRUE?

Apparently, Donnie Walsh informed Isiah Thomas last week that he will not be the Head Coach beyond this season. Walsh seems to be doing what all Knick fans feared he would, keeping Thomas in an "invisible" role. I still have faith that this nightmare doesn't come true.