Van Gundy attributes Knicks' past success to stable leadership
Jeff Van Gundy spent 12 years with the New York Knicks, including parts of seven seasons as head coach.
The 57-year-old helmed the Knicks in their most recent Finals appearance 20 years ago, and he attributes some of that success to the organization's leadership at the time.
"(Former team president) Dave Checketts, who I'm sure you know - great leader," Van Gundy told Mike Krzyzewski's "Basketball and Beyond with Coach K," according to SNY's Alex Smith. "And then ... unfortunately, at the end of my time there, we had a dilution of talent with the Knicks and it happened rapidly due to some just age, some injury."
Van Gundy added, "They had all this talent and Dave Checketts left, and so there was this big void. Since then, they've never settled on a direction of leader from a general manager standpoint or a (head) coach."
Checketts resigned as president and CEO of Madison Square Garden in May 2001. Since his departure, New York has won one playoff series and cycled through 13 head coaches. Over that same span, Van Gundy and Mike D'Antoni are the only two Knicks head coaches to have lasted at least three full seasons.
Van Gundy believes the Knicks need to exercise patience, regardless of who they hire as their next head coach.
"It's been constant change and unfortunately, that amount of change has led to an inconsistency of philosophy, of belief. And I just think they have to settle and give whoever they pick next the opportunity to grow and evolve," said Van Gundy.
"So many of these projects where you're trying to turn a franchise around, they're submarined because of a lack of patience. Everybody says, 'We're all-in to the rebuild,' and 'We're going to be patient,' and then halfway through they lose the stomach for it and think change is the answer."
New York fired David Fizdale partway through his second season with the club. Van Gundy is reportedly on the team's shortlist of candidates to replace him, according to The Athletic's Shams Charania.
The Knicks hold the league's second-worst record at 5-20 entering Friday's slate of games.