The New York Knicks coaching search official comes to an end with Phil Jackson and Derek Fisher together again.
After much speculation and a $25K fine for tampering, Phil Jackson finally has his new head coach in former Lakers champion Derek Fisher. It was rumored that the job would pay close to Steve Kerr numbers when he accepted the Warriors coaching position and that became a reality today, as Fisher and the Knicks organization are in the process of finalizing the five year, $25 million deal.
This move shouldn’t surprise anyone and is actually a great move for the franchise.
On a roster packed full of offensive scoring power but no real point guard to run the offense and get players in their spots for easy buckets – Fisher may implement this from a coaching standpoint. Not to mention he played for one of the greatest head coaches of all time, the Zen Master himself, Phil Jackson.
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Clearly, there will be a collaborative effort on the sidelines (more so behind the scenes) while Fisher tries to make the same transition from player to coach just as future hall of fame point guard Jason Kidd did. How will the players respond to playing for Fisher? They cannot question his championship pedigree, his work ethic or character, and they must respect his knowledge of the game as he has learned from Phil Jackson and Jerry Sloan.
“In the last maybe decade or so, I’ve really felt like my purpose in life, my calling so to speak, was to be in a leadership position or some position of impact on other people. Coaching allows for you to positively impact other people’s lives.“
This is a very solid first move for the new Knicks President, but now the focus must shift to luring Carmelo Anthony to stay in New York City. The task will need Jackson and Fisher to re-create some of that championship chemistry they had together in the past, only this time it will be from a front office position.