Knicks head coach Jeff Hornacek is having none of his predecessor’s shade.
In an interview with Kevin Ding of Bleacher Report that ran on Monday, former Knicks coach Derek Fisher, who was fired by the team last season and eventually replaced by Hornacek, opened up about a number of topics. Among them was the job that Hornacek has been doing with the Knicks this season relative to the one Fisher himself did.
“We were able to take a team that wasn’t as talented as the team they have now, and we were much better and much further along than this group is that they have now,” Fisher said. “Because the foundation was being laid. That’s different than just trying to coach basketball—and it takes longer. That’s the part that you can’t measure in wins and losses either. That’s what we were doing the best at.”
But speaking with reporters on Tuesday, it was Hornacek’s turn to clap back, saying that Fisher had violated coaching protocol by criticizing others within the profession.
“Well, I wouldn’t do it,” Hornacek said, per Al Iannazzone of Newsday. “I don’t think a lot of other guys would do it. But certain guys will.
“There’s enough analysts, reporters, that always like to talk about should’ve, could’ve, what they did, so we don’t pay much attention to it,” he continued. “I think he’s probably also trying to put himself in a light that someone else will give him a job. That’s probably why he’s putting it out there.
“Whatever he did last year, he had a year and a half here — his relationship with Phil, whatever it was, again, this is a new year. Everything’s new,” Hornacek concluded. “Again, he may have thought he did something with that team from last year. I’m not concerned about that.”
Of course, Fisher has a history of not getting along with his peers, so it’s not too shocking that his comments didn’t sit well with the often-blunt Hornacek.
Image via New York Knicks on YouTube
