Los Angeles - Mike D'Antoni has joined the massive rebuilding project of the New York Knicks. D'Antoni, an offensive innovator who spent the last four seasons with the Phoenix Suns, on Saturday accepted a reported four-year, 24- million-dollar offer to coach the beleaguered franchise.
The Knicks issued a statement saying they had agreed to a deal with D'Antoni, with a news conference to be held once the contract was official. SI.com reported the length and value of the deal on its website.
The 2005 NBA Coach of the Year with the Suns, D'Antoni was chosen by Knicks president Donnie Walsh, who was hired in April to resurrect the dormant franchise. Walsh supplanted Isiah Thomas as president, then removed him as coach at the end of the season.
The Knicks went 23-59 this season, matching the most losses in team history. They have not been to the playoffs since 2004 and have not won a postseason series since 2000.
D'Antoni has been operating at the other end of the spectrum. Over the last four seasons with the Suns, he never won less than 54 games and compiled a 232-96 record, utilizing a fast-break offense that a handful of other teams have copied.
However, D'Antoni was unable to deliver a trip to the NBA Finals. Phoenix lost in the Western Conference finals in 2005 and 2006 and in the conference semifinals last year, when injuries and suspensions derailed them in a series against San Antonio.
This season, the Suns traded athletic forward Shawn Marion to Miami for aging 7-1 center Shaquille O'Neal, hoping to improve their interior defense. D'Antoni was said to be in favour of the trade, but Phoenix lost to San Antonio in the first round of the playoffs.
Last week, D'Antoni - who had two years remaining on his contract - was given permission by Suns owner Robert Sarver to pursue coaching opportunities with other teams. He reportedly met with both Walsh and representatives of the Chicago Bulls.
The Bulls appeared to be a better fit for D'Antoni with a nucleus of young, athletic players such as Britain's Luol Deng, Switzerland's Thabo Sefolosha, Tyrus Thomas and Ben Gordon. Meanwhile, the Knicks have a roster of mismatched parts that Walsh has admitted needs an overhaul.
Big men Eddy Curry and Zach Randolph are more comfortable in a half-court offense. There also are questions at point guard, where Stephon Marbury has been reluctant to work with coaches throughout his career and is coming off ankle surgery.
In D'Antoni's first season in Phoenix in 2003-04, he briefly coached Marbury before the guard was traded to New York.
Walsh was believed to be ready to hire New York native and former Knicks point guard Mark Jackson, currently a broadcaster for ABC Sports. However, when D'Antoni became available, Walsh apparently reconsidered, opting for a coach with more experience.
A champion as a player and coach in Italy, D'Antoni's experience will be tested by the Knicks, who have not won more than 33 games in any of the last four seasons and are well above the salary cap, limiting their ability to add players. But his departure leaves the Suns without a coach.
Among those still available is Avery Johnson, who was fired by the Dallas Mavericks earlier this month and also may be a candidate for the vacancy in Chicago. The Mavericks hired Rick Carlisle as their coach Friday.
