Mike Woodson could be in for a second spell as the head coach of the New York Knicks as the 62-year old is reportedly among candidates for the job.
According to SNY’s Ian Begley, Woodson is set for an interview with the team over the role, as are former Chicago Bulls and Minnesota head coach Tom Thibodeau, former Brooklyn Nets coach Kenny Atkinson and current Knicks interim coach Mike Miller. Thibodeau is believed to be the favorite to land the job at Madison Square Garden.
Mike Woodson Played 11 Seasons In The NBA
Woodson spent 11 years as a player in the NBA after getting selected by the Knicks in the first round of the 1980 draft; he played for five other teams before starting out as a coach in 1996. The Indianapolis native rejoined the Knicks as an assistant in 2011 and took over as head coach after Mike D’Antoni stepped down.
Since leaving the position, he has admitted that he’d like to return.
“I don’t want to hide the fact I’d love to be back,” he told the New York Post’s Marc Berman in 2018. “I’d like to finish what I started. At the end of the day, you want to come to New York, based on my body of work there. I want it to be mutual. I want them to want me. I hope they call me.”
Woodson’s Record Wasn’t Bad At All
Woodson won 18 games and lost just six for the remainder of the 2011/12 season but the Knicks were eliminated from the playoffs by the Miami Heat – no shame in losing to Dwyane Wade, LeBron James and Chris Bosh – he also took the team to the playoffs the following year and would lead them to the conference semi-finals, where they would be booted out by the Indiana Pacers.
Woodson posted a 109-79 record across a little over two seasons in charge of the team. The Knicks haven’t made it to the postseason since.
