Knicks Formally Introduce Jeff Hornacek As Head Coach
TARRYTOWN, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- Jeff Hornacek didn't take long to crack his first joke as the Knicks' new head coach.
Moments after Hornacek was formally introduced to the media Friday, team president Phil Jackson was asked about how the triangle offense would figure into Hornacek's tenure.
MORE: Schmeelk: 5 Takeaways From Jeff Hornacek's News Conference
"Surprising question," the former Suns coach sarcastically quipped.
It was a foregone conclusion that the triangle would be a hot topic at the news conference. Jackson, an ardent supporter of the system that propelled him to 11 world championships as a coach, commented that he was actually surprised it was the second question asked, and not the first.
Jackson and Hornacek insisted both of their coaching philosophies can coexist.
Hornacek, who favors an up-tempo offense, said that while interviewing for the job, he began drawing up plays he would like to run out of the triangle. Jackson then told him, "Yeah, you can run every play you want out of the triangle offense," Hornacek said.
"The triangle has aspects that I've run through my offense," the new Knicks coach told WFAN's Mike Francesa in a phone interview later Friday. "We never called it triangle, but it's the same kind of setup. And the triangle, to me, is just a way of spacing the floor. There's reads out of it."
MORE: 5 Facts About Jeff Hornacek
Hornacek does have a connection to the triangle offense, even though he might not have always recognized it, Jackson said. Hornacek played under coach Cotton Fitzsimmons with the Phoenix Suns. Fitzsimmons served as an assistant coach at Kansas State under Tex Winter, the architect of the triangle and Jackson's mentor.
"It's all part of basketball, and Jeff recognizes that," Jackson said of the system.
Hornacek said he's not concerned that working for Jackson could result in him having less freedom to run the team the way he wants to.
"I look at it as you try to get the most knowledge you can out to these players, and if Phil, with 11 championships, has some suggestions for me, sure, I'm going to listen to them and take them into consideration and take them to the coaching staff and really look at it," Hornacek told Francesa.
Jackson said he and Hornacek had a close relationship in the late 1990s and suspected that when Hornacek retired that he would someday return to the NBA as a coach.
"He fit the profile of a lot of the guys that we liked to feature in our teams back in the '90s and 2000s," Jackson said. "I always admired his skill and his basketball knowledge on the floor.
"He's a person you can relate to. ... It was one of those things that was just right."
Jackson said he first reached out to Hornacek in April. They then met in the Los Angeles area a few weeks ago when Hornacek was there for his daughter's graduation from USC. After that meeting and a video conference call with general manager Steve Mills, Jackson called Mills and told him, "I think this is our guy.'"
Hornacek said he is honored to be coaching the Knicks, adding he always had "a special feeling" when he played at Madison Square Garden.
"I'm really excited to be here, my family's excited to be here, to coach the Knicks and go through this process of getting them back to I think where all the Knicks fans want us to be," he said. "I think it's going to be an exciting ride."
Hornacek said he's excited to coach a superstar in Carmelo Anthony and the promising 7-foot-3-inch power forward Kristaps Porzingis.
"The one thing when I watched him play is, at that size, he's fluid with his movements," Hornacek said. "He's going to get more muscle on him as the years go on. But it's not like he's stumbling around. He's got great coordination. He can shoot the ball outside. He can run the floor. He can block shots. He can go in the post."
A former All-Star guard with the Suns, Hornacek, 53, returned to his old team in 2013 as coach and went 101-112 in two-plus seasons. During his first season, the Suns went 48-34, but missed the playoffs. Hornacek finished in second place in Coach of the Year balloting that year. The following season, Phoenix went 39-43. Hornacek was then fired this past February after the Suns started 14-35.
"The NBA's a crazy business," Hornacek said. "One year, everything might go right. Another year, everything might go wrong. There's a lot of circumstances that happen with a lot of teams. It could be injuries, it could be trades, it could be team chemistry. Whatever it is, you just take all that stuff in and you see what works, what didn't, and take it to the next place."
The Knicks also interviewed former Cavaliers coach David Blatt, ex-Pacers coach Frank Vogel and Kurt Rambis, who served as the team's interim coach this past season.
It was not clear Friday what role, if any, Rambis will have with the Knicks going forward, although Hornacek said he has spoken to him about a possible assistant coaching job and plans to speak with him again.
