The New York Knicks are hoping to interview a Hall of Fame player for their head-coaching vacancy, but they would first need permission from another NBA team.
The Knicks are expected to formally request permission to interview Dallas Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd, according to NBA reporter Marc Stein.
Stein wrote on Friday that the Knicks have interest in Kidd, though it is unclear how the Mavericks will react to the inquiry.
ESPN’s Tim McMahon, who covers the Mavericks, said on “The Hoop Collective” podcast earlier this week that there is a possibility of Kidd leaving Dallas to take the same job with the Knicks. McMahon cited Kidd’s strong relationship with Jalen Brunson, whom Kidd coached in Dallas, and other people in New York.
While McMahon said it would be going “way too far” to say Kidd wants out of Dallas, the reporter claimed the Mavericks have made some recent decisions that Kidd was not pleased about.
Kidd is close with veteran NBA trainer Casey Smith, who was controversially phased out by the Mavericks a while back. Smith has since taken a job with the Knicks.
Kidd just completed his fourth season as the head coach in Dallas. He led the team to the NBA Finals a year ago, but things changed dramatically for the Mavericks after Luka Doncic was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers in a stunning move. Kidd suggested publicly that he had no say in the deal.
The 52-year-old Kidd spent a brief period as a player with the Knicks during his Hall of Fame career in 2012-13.
The Knicks are expected to cast a wide net in their search for a new coach after they made the stunning decision to fire Tom Thibodeau, who just led the team on an improbable Eastern Conference Finals run. Kidd is not the only coach under contract with another team who appears to be on New York’s list of candidates.
