from Isola:

In the past, Mike D'Antoni has reportedly refused to take on a defensive-minded coach. But, he could be directed to add someone like former Nets coach Lawrence Frank (below) with the Knicks.

As Donnie Walsh seeks to regain full autonomy within the Knicks organization, Mike D'Antoni could be losing some of his power on the Knicks' bench.

According to several sources, the front office will encourage D'Antoni to revamp his coaching staff to hire a defensive coach. In the past, D'Antoni has been reluctant to seek outside help, most famously refusing Steve Kerr's request four years ago to hire Tom Thibodeau in Phoenix. Thibodeau landed in Boston in 2007, and helped the Celtics win the title three seasons ago. He now is head coach of the top-seeded Bulls.

D'Antoni is under contract through next season and is expected to be retained after leading the Knicks to their first postseason appearance in seven years. However, under D'Antoni the Knicks have been among the league's weaker defensive teams, which is something Walsh would like to change.

Memphis assistant Dave Joerger, Orlando's Steve Clifford, Portland's Bill Bayno and Chicago's Ron Adams are all regarded as top defensive coaches. Another possibility for the Knicks is Thibodeau's replacement in Boston, Lawrence Frank, the former Nets' coach. Frank's contract expires this summer.

A move to hire another assistant does not necessarily mean one of D'Antoni's current assistants will be removed. Phil Weber, Dan D'Antoni, Herb Williams and the highly regarded Ken Atkinson are all expected to be retained. D'Antoni, who is expected to acquiesce to management, has made it clear that he wants to remain in New York. However, there will be several job openings this summer that D'Antoni might find attractive, including one with Golden State, whose roster has players better suited to play D'Antoni's up-tempo system than the Knicks currently do.

Walsh has been in meetings with Garden chairman James Dolan the past two days over a possible contract extension. Walsh's contract, which expires on June 30, calls for his option to be picked up by Saturday.

The general sense is that Walsh will return, but there is really no way of knowing because Walsh has a reputation for not tipping his hand. What is known is that the 70-year-old executive wants several conditions met, including being the chief basketball decision-maker.

Dolan took over the Carmelo Anthony trade negotiations from Walsh and was being advised by Isiah Thomas, whom Dolan tried to hire as a paid consultant last August. Walsh also wants the power to hire a general manager, which Dolan has denied him in the past.

Walsh is also seeking to have the contracts of several key front-office members renewed, including John Gabriel, director of pro scouting and free agency, and director of West scouting Mark Hughes, who is seen a future GM in the league.

Last Saturday, Walsh told reporters the decision on whether he will return would be made by both him and Dolan, which is a clear indication that Walsh is not basing his move strictly on financial considerations.

In the past, Walsh has been uncomfortable discussing his future and has imposed a media boycott since the Knicks were eliminated by Boston last Sunday.

If Walsh is not satisfied with what he hears from Dolan, he may opt to return to his offseason in home in Indianapolis. Walsh's wife has remained in Indiana since he was hired to replace Thomas four seasons ago.

From Berman:

Knicks, Walsh await Don deal
By MARC BERMAN

Last Updated: 6:23 AM, April 29, 2011

Posted: 2:30 AM, April 29, 2011

It probably won't be until next week when an in-hiding Donnie Walsh faces the media, but sources said an agreement in principle for the Knicks president to return next season is in place.

The Post reported Wednesday a deal between Walsh and owner James Dolan was close to being done. Walsh had hoped to finalize the deal by the end of this week and an announcement still could come today or at tomorrow's deadline.

"They're just tying up some of the loose ends," one league source said.

Tomorrow is the deadline for Dolan to exercise the final $5 million year of Walsh's contract, but that can be ripped up for a separate two-year extension, which has been discussed.

Walsh met with Dolan this week but has yet to sign any contracts, which, it is believed, is why there has been no announcement.

According to sources, coach Mike D'Antoni has been told he's in no danger. He has one year left on his contract. It's unclear if he will seek a one-year extension.

Neither Walsh nor D'Antoni has been made available for their customary after-season meeting with the media. Walsh has not returned phone calls.

There could be issues regarding Walsh's staff. He would like to be in position to handpick his successor -- which could eventually be Allan Houston.

Several of Walsh's top basketball men have contracts that are up, including senior VP of basketball operations, Glen Grunwald, director of player personnel, Misho Ostarcevic and pro personnel director John Gabriel.

Then there's the issue of recently named consultant Mark Warkentien, who was hired in midseason through June 30 and given a $100,000 contract on sort of an audition basis.

Warkentien, the former Nuggets general manager, was seen as a potential successor to Walsh. Beyond helping out with the draft, Warkentien was hired partly for his intel of Denver's player and administrative personnel leading up to Melo negotiations. Warkentien's future with the club is unclear.

It is not unlike the Garden to delay announcements. The Post's Larry Brooks reported Sunday Rangers coach John Tortorella had signed a multi-year contract extension months ago and yet the Rangers have not officially announced the extension.

The Knicks were the only team swept in the first round, losing to Boston on Sunday.

Walsh had long debated whether he wanted to return next season, concerned he was losing control as the No. 1 decision-maker in basketball operations following the Carmelo Anthony trade with Denver. Walsh this week sought assurances that it won't be an issue in the future.

Walsh, 70, also was motivated to return because of the realization of how much work the roster needs after the Anthony trade gutted the team. Walsh always has said he wants to retire only when he feels the Knicks are on verge of being a championship contender.

*

The NBA released its list of early-entry draft candidates yesterday. While center is the Knicks' most pressing need, there are a major dearth of pivots likely available at 17th.

A source said the Knicks will also look at point guards and deft-shooting two-guards as needs.

The slump of Landry Fields has made the Knicks realize they could use more outside shooting prowess at that position, though they believe Fields is still a big part of the future. Though they are not true centers, rugged boardmen with good size on yesterday's list are 6-9 Texas' Tristan Thompson and Georgia's 6-10 Trey Thompkins. Both could fall to 17.

Point-guard underclassmen Josh Selby and Reggie Jackson are 17-range types, but Duke senior Nolan Smith may be rated higher. Underclassmen shooting guards Klay Thompson and Texas' Jordan Hamilton may also be available. One mock draft has the Knicks taking UCLA shooting guard Tyler Honeycutt.

Another PS: i'd look at j-rich as the 2 guard for the MLE, if we are going to use it. J rich is a good scorer, 3 point shooter and a vet who is not past his prime

Silverfuel wrote:Why don't they concentrate on getting us a PG and a C and let the coach handle the coaching. Give him a year with a good team without messing with him or his system.

Yup Yup

Personally, I wouldn't mind seeing D'Antoni get a fair shot considering we have handicapped ourselves from adding talent to save cap space for the past several years. Add to that the constant roster changes and I don't see how any coach could have gotten the group of guys we had to play good D consistently.

Again, I won't complain at all if we bring in another coach to help with D but it seems like a weird time to force this (vs. when Kerr did it which was more legitimate in my mind).

s3231 wrote:Not that I mind if we bring in a defensive coach to help D'Antoni b/c I think our group of assistants collectively are below average, but it seems like a weird time to force this. I mean, for anyone to think that the defense would have been good this year after all of the personnel changes and the fact that our core players aren't known for their defense is extremely far fetched. Hell, the main reason for getting swept in the playoffs was not defense.

Personally, I wouldn't mind seeing D'Antoni get a fair shot considering we have handicapped ourselves from adding talent to save cap space for the past several years. Add to that the constant roster changes and I don't see how any coach could have gotten the group of guys we had to play good D consistently.

Again, I won't complain at all if we bring in another coach to help with D but it seems like a weird time to force this (vs. when Kerr did it which was more legitimate in my mind).

i think that certain people were likely quite concerned about what they witnessed in the defensive schemes of the team in the playoffs as well as the feedback from the players.

Q: What do you think of the job Mike D'Antoni has done with the Knicks?

A: I thought he did a great job. He's been given very difficult circumstances: an ever-revolving roster, trying to get two stars to play well together simultaneously and a point guard who doesn't necessarily fit the type of point guard he's become accustomed to. Chauncey Billups is best in a mid-tempo game. I think Mike adjusted a lot offensively. And the same with (Carmelo) Anthony; he's not a true runner or a quick decision-maker. (D'Antoni) did a really good job adjusting to new personnel on the run and dealing with a little bit of unfair expectations that they were going to be a great team.

Q: Can D'Antoni and Anthony excel together?

A: Oh, of course. Systems are overrated, players are underrated. Everyone's system in the NBA makes sense. It all comes down to the quality of player and the quality of execution. D'Antoni can be successful playing slow or fast because he is a bright guy who has very creative ideas.

Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/more_sports/jeff_van_gundy_W7sspnFcD3B3dn5b7di2ZP#ixzz1KvOBPlwu

d'antoni's staff isn't the problem, just like curry's weight wasn't the real problem. the real problem was eddy. just like now the real problem is d'antoni.

his ego is too damn big and i think there's going to be an ugly clash with melo (or possibly billups) next season - another guy with a big ego. i wonder whose side everyone will choose when that happens?

i'm glad donnie is patient, but i think even he'll realize that mike isn't the right coach for this team anymore.

nyk4ever wrote:

crzymdups wrote:i'm starting to think that the people who think d'antoni is going to work here are like the folks who thought eddy curry was going to work here.

d'antoni's staff isn't the problem, just like curry's weight wasn't the real problem. the real problem was eddy. just like now the real problem is d'antoni.

his ego is too damn big and i think there's going to be an ugly clash with melo (or possibly billups) next season - another guy with a big ego. i wonder whose side everyone will choose when that happens?

i'm glad donnie is patient, but i think even he'll realize that mike isn't the right coach for this team anymore.

i thought d'antoni did a good job of putting his EGO aside and tweaking his system to better suit chauncey and carmelo. as godsavetheknicks posted that JVG article, apparently he thinks he did a good job too.

JVG would never throw another coach under the bus. Especially in the tabloid rag NY POST. JVG worked the media in NY and knows how much they suck. He seems to have a soft spot for the Knicks and was probably trying to take a little heat off D'Antoni.

I'd love for JVG or Mark Jackson to be the coach here. I actually like D'Antoni, but I don't think he's the right coach for a Melo-centric team. Especially if Billups is also staying.