Report: Knicks Legend Could Return to Coaching

Maurice Cheeks might not be the only New York Knick to make coaching news this summer.

With Cheeks, who spent part of his Hall of Fame playing career with the Knicks, reportedly set to join head coach Tom Thibodeau’s staff, new rumors from longtime NBA insider Marc Stein hint that another former Manhattan star may be ready to take another seat on a professional bench.

Stein’s latest newsletter offers some intriguing intel involving former Knicks head coach Jeff Van Gundy, as his report declares that the Los Angeles Clippers “have strong interest in hiring” him for a spot on head coach Tyronn Lue’s staff for the 2024-25 season. If it came to pass, the Clipper job would be Van Gundy’s first on an NBA bench since he was the head coach of the Houston Rockets in 2007.

Van Gundy, 62, holds a consulting role with the Boston Celtics, who will play for their record 18th NBA championship on Friday night in Dallas (8:30 p.m. ET, ABC). Prior to his hire in October, Van Gundy had served as an analyst for the prior 17 editions of the NBA Finals for ESPN/ABC alongside Knicks play-by-play man Mike Breen and former Knicks point guard Mark Jackson. Both Van Gundy and Jackson were part of ESPN’s wide-ranging layoffs announced last summer.

Though younger generations may know Van Gundy for his broadcasting prowess, he is best known to Knicks fans as one of the most successful coaches in recent franchise memory. Van Gundy was at the helm for six seasons (1996-2002) and is responsible for the team’s most recent NBA Finals appearance (1999).

He currently ranks third in franchise history with 248 regular season wins and is second in postseason triumphs with 37. Prior to Tom Thibodeau (who will presumably remain the Knicks’ head coach come this fall), Van Gundy was the last New York boss to make it to his fifth season at the helm.

Van Gundy is apparently in high demand, as a prior Stein report said that his current green employers were “exploring the prospect of (him) moving onto the bench as a day-to-day assistant to Joe Mazzulla.” Boston is already set to lose top assistant Charles Lee, who will take the Charlotte Hornets’ top post once the Finals end.

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