NBA Rumors: Mark Jackson open to coaching New York Knicks

Apr 29, 2014; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors head coach Mark Jackson during the 2nd half of the Warriors 113-103 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers in game five of the first round of the 2014 NBA Playoffs at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Robert Hanashiro-USA TODAY Sports /

When Phil Jackson took over as president of the New York Knicks, he obviously had a coaching candidate in my mind – one of his former players, Steve Kerr. Kerr, however, took the head coaching job with the Golden State Warriors instead, forcing Jackson to start a larger search.

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It appears as though Oklahoma City Thunder point guard Derek Fisher, who also played for Jackson, is the leading candidate for the job, but the coach Kerr succeeded in Golden State, Mark Jackson, could be a candidate. If the Knicks are serious about Jackson as a candidate, he would certainly be interested in the job.

“Obviously, you hear the talk, even if it’s the New York Post reporting my inner circle made a statement, and I have no clue because my wife and kids have not spoken to the Post, so just to counter that,” Jackson said via Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe. “It’s an incredible job. It’s an incredible opportunity. And I’m sure that Phil Jackson will do an outstanding job of finding the right coach to get that organization and that team headed back in the right situation.”

Jackson also says coaching the Knicks adds pressure, but believes he can handle it.

“As a kid that grew up in New York City and with the Knicks, everybody’s not made for New York City, whether you’re in management, whether you’re playing, whether you’re coaching,” said Jackson, who was named the 1988 NBA Rookie of the Year while with the Knicks. “I can remember as a kid watching very good to great players play in other places, be traded to the Knicks, and not be the same player, whereas some propelled when they got the opportunity to put on a Knicks uniform. It’s something about the fans. It’s something about the pressure. It’s something about the media.

In three years with the Warriors, Jackson went 121-109, including a playoff record of 9-10.

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