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Phil Jackson says interim Kurt Rambis will remain head coach

The New York Knicks tossed head coach Derek Fisher to the curb this morning and put assistant Kurt Rambis in charge. But how long will Rambis get to run the show? For a while, apparently. Here’s the New York Post reporting:

The interim label was firmly affixed to the new head coach, but Knicks president Phil Jackson insisted he has his man in Kurt Rambis and is not seeking candidates to replace Derek Fisher, ousted after a season and a half.

“Kurt Rambis will be the new coach. We’re not in a coaching hunt, looking for anybody else. He’s the associate head coach. I have complete confidence in his ability to coach this team,” Jackson said Monday, indicating Rambis will serve out at least the rest of the season. “He has plenty of experience.”

Now whether that experience or whatever happens in the Knicks’ final 28 games will be enough to bring Rambis back next season remains to be seen. But rolled up in 18 seasons of coaching experience, Rambis said, is his belief there is only one way to right the listing ship: Kurt Rambis’ way.

“It’s not necessarily different,” Rambis said when asked how he will vary from Fisher, fired Monday after compiling a 40-96 record in his first head-coaching job. “The recommendation and advice we all receive from veteran coaches: You’ve got to be yourself. You’ve got to do things your way so if you end up in a situation where you do get fired, you feel like you handled things the way you wanted.”

Knicks fire Derek Fisher

New York Knicks President Phil Jackson announced today that Derek Fisher has been relieved of his coaching duties. Associate Head Coach Kurt Rambis has been named the interim head coach.

Fisher, who was originally hired on Jun. 10, 2014, finishes his Knicks coaching career with an overall record of 40-96 (.294).

According to ESPN.com, “The Knicks are 23-31 this season after going 17-65 in Fisher’s first season. New York’s current losing skid contributed to the timing of the move, but the team was already convinced Fisher was not transitioning from the role of player to coach effectively, sources told ESPN’s Brian Windhorst.”

Rambis becomes the 27th head coach in franchise history. Originally hired as the team’s associate head coach on Jul. 7, 2014, the 18-year NBA coaching veteran starts his second-stint as a head coach, after leading the Minnesota Timberwolves for two seasons from 2009-10 through 2010-11 (56-145). The Terre Haute, IN native was a member of eight NBA Championship teams, all as a member of the Los Angeles Lakers (four as a player and four as a coach or executive). Rambis becomes the fifth former Knicks draft pick to coach the team (third round, 58th overall in the 1980 NBA Draft).

Knicks sign Thanasis Antetokounmpo to 10-day contract

The New York Knicks today signed forward Thanasis Antetokounmpo – from the Westchester Knicks – to a 10-day contract. His signing marks the 15th NBA D-League call-up of the season.

Antetokounmpo, 6-7, 205-pounds, is averaging 10.3 points, on 50.2-percent shooting, 4.4 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.26 blocks over 27.7 minutes in 27 games (25 starts) for the D-League’s Eastern Conference-leading Westchester Knicks (16-11) this season.

The Athens, Greece-native was originally selected by New York in the second round (51st overall) of the 2014 NBA Draft, attending training camp in 2015 before being waived on Oct. 23, 2015, returning to Westchester for the second straight season. He is the older brother of Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis.

Carmelo Anthony knee issue seems minor

The Knicks are 22-25 this season and are getting 21.3 points, 7.5 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game in the 42 games star forward Carmelo Anthony has played this season. Here’s the New York Post reporting on Melo’s knee situation:

Carmelo Anthony won’t play Thursday night in Toronto, but said he’s happy to be out of the woods.

Call off the alarm bells. Most of Anthony’s left knee soreness has gone away and he believes he will play Friday against the Suns at the Garden. He said he has no worries about any structural issues related to his surgically repaired torn patellar tendon.

If the Knicks weren’t playing on consecutive nights, Anthony probably would have given it a whirl against the Eastern Conference-power Raptors, who are looking for the franchise-record 10th straight win. Instead, Anthony will miss his second straight game and sixth of the season. The Knicks are 0-5 in the games he’s missed.

Kristaps Porzingis gets weight changes under control

The Knicks (22-24 through Sunday’s games) are getting 14.0 points, 7.8 rebounds and 1.96 blocks per game from talented 7’3″ rookie Kristaps Porzingis. Here’s the New York Post reporting on his weight fluctuations:

Kristaps Porzingis realized he would shrink to nothing if he didn’t take the Knicks’ new dietitian’s advice and inhale a grand-style breakfast.

While the rail-thin Knicks 7-foot-3 rookie added 11 pounds from the end of July’s summer league to the start of training camp, Porzingis started to gradually drop weight as the regular season rolled on and his minutes increased.

After going from 227 to 238 pounds over the summer, Porzingis dropped to 233 by December.

“Now I’m maintaining it,’’ Porzingis told The Post on Saturday. “I lost a little bit at the beginning of the season. It was hard to maintain that, but I’ve been staying at the same weight and I got to maintain this weight for sure. Once the season is over, I’ll try to get up to 245 pounds for next season.’’

Knicks frontcourt playing well

The Spurs’ home winning streak nearly ended Friday, when Knicks guard Jose Calderon missed a potential game-winning three-pointer at the buzzer in San Antonio. The narrow defeat is the only loss in the last five games for New York (19-20), which has already surpassed last season’s win total and sits only 1.5 games behind Orlando for eighth place in the Eastern Conference. The Knicks’ starting frontcourt has flourished in those five games, with forward Carmelo Anthony averaging 20.6 points, 9.4 rebounds and 5.4 assists, forward Kristaps Porzingis contributing 17.2 points, 7.8 rebounds and 1.8 blocks and center Robin Lopez chipping in 13.8 points, 7.0 rebounds and 1.6 blocks. Sunday’s home victory over Milwaukee tipped off a stretch in which the Knicks play 12 of 17 at Madison Square Garden leading into the All-Star break.

Kristaps Porzingis, Karl-Anthony Towns named NBA Rookies of Month for December, 2015

New York Knicks forward Kristaps Porzingis and Minnesota Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns today were named the NBA Eastern and Western Conference Rookies of the Month, respectively, for games played in December.

This is the second consecutive NBA Rookie of the Month award for Porzingis, who ranked second among East rookies in scoring (12.6 ppg) and rebounding (6.4 rpg) and first among all rookies in blocked shots (2.20 bpg). Porzingis posted four point-rebound double-doubles and blocked three or more shots in six games. He also shot 36.6 percent (15-of-41) from three-point range for the month. During a 91-84 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Dec. 23, Porzingis made 4-of-5 from three-point range en route to 23 points and added 13 rebounds and four assists.

Towns, who also earns his second straight NBA Rookie of the Month award, led all first-year players in scoring (18.6 ppg) and rebounding (9.5 rpg) and ranked second in blocks (1.56 bpg). He recorded eight point-rebound double-doubles in December and produced eight games with at least 20 points. Towns shot 55.3 percent from the field for the month and made at least half his shots in 14 of 16 games. During a 123-122 overtime win against the Los Angeles Lakers on Dec. 9, Towns posted 26 points, 14 rebounds and three blocks.

Other nominees for the NBA Eastern and Western Conference Rookies of the Month were Charlotte’s Frank Kaminsky, Denver’s Nikola Jokic, the Los Angeles Lakers’ D’Angelo Russell, Miami’s Justise Winslow and Philadelphia’s Jahlil Okafor.

Knicks, Robin Lopez chemistry still in development

The Knicks (14-16) are getting 7.4 points, 5.4 rebounds in 23.5 minutes per game from defensive-minded center Robin Lopez. So far, he hasn’t delivered the impact Knicks brass hoped he would. Here’s the New York Post with insight:

The riddle of RoLo continues.

It’s little secret why the Knicks have lost two in a row during an 11-game stretch against winning teams. In both losses, to the Magic and Cavaliers, shooting guard Arron Afflalo was lousy (8 of 25). Carmelo Anthony missed Wednesday’s contest in Cleveland, and reserve power forward Kyle O’Quinn was out both defeats with a sprained ankle, showing how valuable he has become to Derek Fisher.

But one of the more under-the-radar issues is the season’s biggest enigma, starting center Robin Lopez, their most expensive free-agent signing at four years and $54 million. Nobody is more confused than Fisher in his attempt to place Lopez in a role that can positively affect the outcome.

Fisher benched Lopez in Cleveland for the game’s final 13:14. On Monday against the Magic, Fisher stuck with Lopez on Orlando center Nikola Vucevic and got burned for it. So Lopez never saw the Quicken Loans Arena court in the fourth quarter despite the absence of Anthony and O’Quinn.

Metta World Peace has long-time interest in coaching

Here’s the Los Angeles Daily News reporting on Lakers forward Metta World Peace and his long-time interest in coaching:

“It started when I first started playing basketball, I went to five star basketball camp back in 1999. It was fun. I coached Danny Green. He was one of my players. I remember him being the best on the team and I remember him sometimes not shooting. I would tell him to shoot. I was like, ‘Shoot the ball. Shoot the ball.’ It was fun. He remembers it too. That was when I was 19 or 20. I was young.

I always wanted to learn the game because I was never athletic. I picked the triangle offense quick in Chicago. I picked it up pretty well under Bill Cartwright. Then in Indiana, I was picking up everything quickly. I was young. But with all the defensive coverages I faced, was picking up everything. I was also giving input, not verbally but by example. Coach Carlisle said something one day I might be able to be a coach. I was 24 when he said that. I was confident when he said that. I have continued to coach. I have a little league team called ‘Triple Threat.’ I train people. Triple Threat was a team that my foundation funded. It was a team that we funded. I would coach them sometimes.” …

“I want to coach one day. I definitely have interest in coaching. But I want people to know I’m staying in tip top shape. Just because I want to coach doesn’t mean I’m retiring. If something opens up, I might apply for the job. It doesn’t mean I’m not staying in tip top shape. I’m not a player where I want to coach because I’m done playing basketball. I love playing basketball. I’m preparing for both.”

Various Nets impressed by Kristaps Porzingis

New York Knicks rookie power forward Kristaps Porzingis is averaging 13.8 points, 9.3 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game this season, and is improving regularly. He has the attention of the league, and certainly players right nearby on the Nets. Here’s the New York Post reporting:

Various Nets compliment Kristaps Porzingis

While Kristaps Porzingis was busy throwing shade at Brooklyn — saying the Knicks had the better fans — the Nets were throwing bouquets at him. And with the rivals set to face off Friday in the Garden, Nets point guard Jarrett Jack tapped the 20-year-old big man as the favorite to win NBA Rookie of the Year.

“Clearly, I think he’s the clear case for Rookie of the Year right now. I would believe so, with all the naysayers in the beginning, and then him coming out and just playing hard,’’ Jack said. “Sure, he has some skills to go with it, but from what I’ve seen, he puts himself in position to get tip-dunks. I’ve seen him in situations where he’s gotten steals on the break, making plays.” …

“I’ve been watching him. He’s very, very good,’’ said power forward Thaddeus Young, who will start matched up vs. Porzingis.