Entering the process, the sense around the league was the 10 other Knicks coaching candidates would need knock it out of the park to unseat strong favorite Tom Thibodeau.
While sources says Jason Kidd wowed Knicks brass with “a great interview,” it might not be enough to topple Thibodeau, whose relationship with Knicks president Leon Rose and senior vice president William Wesley should prove insurmountable. They repped Thibodeau at Creative Artists Agency.
The batch of three-hour second interviews with 11 known candidates was completed Monday, giving Knicks executives some time to sort through the data.
Multiple sources insist this was always “Thibodeau’s job to lose’’ — and probably hasn’t.
“I think Tom and Leon can get the Knicks back to 50 wins,’’ one league source said. “And the Knicks need wins. Tom having Leon there is the key.’’
Kidd and Kenny Atkinson are formidable candidates with plenty to offer, but sources believe they remain long shots — unless Thibodeau turns down the job. (In 2014, Steve Kerr accepted a verbal offer to coach the Knicks before reneging. The team subsequently hired Derek Fisher.)
The Knicks hold the edge because potential Thibodeau suitors — Houston, Philadelphia and Brooklyn — are involved in the Orlando restart. That gave the Knicks ample time to conduct a fact-finding search and get coaching candidates to evaluate their players.
It’s been more than five weeks since Rose and his operatives began the search — one that began when the NBA approved restart plans that didn’t include the Knicks.
With the economic crisis caused by the pandemic, Thibodeau would be taking a risk if he were to turn down the Knicks, even if their roster doesn’t compare to those of Houston, Philly or the Nets.
However, with financial losses hitting NBA’s owners, there may not be as much coaching turnover as expected.
The Sixers instituted pay cuts during the pandemic and may not be in a rush to fire Brett Brown. And the Rockets could still re-up with Mike D’Antoni for another season if they succeed in Orlando. Sources believe the Nets’ Jacque Vaughn also has a solid chance of coming back.
A former Knicks assistant, Thibodeau went on to lofty accomplishments in Chicago (255-139, .647) and then broke Minnesota’s 13-year playoff drought in 2017-18.
Thibodeau’s ending wasn’t pretty in Minnesota with allegations of failing to connect with some of the team’s young nucleus, but former Wolves big man and current Knick Taj Gibson defended him.
Gibson told The Post on Feb. 13, when Thibodeau’s name first was reported as a potential successor to interim coach Mike Miller, “Since I’ve been here, a lot of those old Knicks players always come up to me and they loved Thibs.
“He’s been misunderstood. A lot of players have different mindsets. His mindset is winning. To win games you got to go through a lot of hard work. Sometimes young players don’t understand it.’’
ESPN’s Jalen Rose told The Post over the weekend that Kidd, now a Lakers assistant, is a better choice because of his potential in either developing stars such as Giannis Antetokounmpo or attracting them.
One source who has worked with Kidd noted he’s “won everywhere he’s gone.’’
Kidd’s last season as a player came when the Knicks were 54-28 in 2012-13 and the bottom fell out in terms of team leadership once he retired to coach the Nets.
“He has a knack for developing young guys, giving them confidence,’’ the source said. “He also knows how to win with vets and understands the pressure of big markets. And he’s fixed teams — Nets, Knicks Milwaukee.’’
As for Mike Woodson, the Knicks former head coach could land on the staffs of either Thibodeau or Kidd. Woodson was head coach when Kidd was a Knick. Thibodeau and Woodson are each represented by Creative Artists Agency.
Former Knicks/DePaul star Rod Strickland will conduct Wednesday’s virtual Knicks kids camp. Because of the pandemic, the Knicks canceled all their annual kids camps across New York and New Jersey. Instead, the Knicks started free video camps three times a week for the next month and it was kicked off by point guard Dennis Smith Jr. Monday.
Because of ties to Rose and Wesley as a former assistant coach at both Kentucky and Memphis under John Calipari, Strickland is a name to watch if the club replaces Craig Robinson. Michele Obama’s brother was the Knicks’ player development director/vice president of minor leagues and left to run the National Association of Basketball Coaches.
According to a source, Allan Houston will take on a larger role in terms of helping out the player development department. But the Knicks may replace Robinson by hiring a Westchester Knicks GM. Strickland works for the G-League in player relations.