CHANEY WANTED SHOT WITH MARBURY
By MARC BERMAN
New York Post
SAN ANTONIO - In breaking a nearly 10-month silence, Don Chaney says he has one
regret from his Knick coaching stint. He wished Isiah Thomas would've given him
a legit chance to win with Stephon Marbury as his point guard.

Last season, nine days after Marbury made his Knick debut, Chaney was fired on
Jan. 14 in a messy split that drew citywide sympathy. Chaney told The Post
yesterday he does not want to finish his head-coaching career on that note and
will actively seek a head job this summer.

"The one regret, I wanted to see how we would have developed with Marbury,"
Chaney said. "The biggest regret was I finally got a quality point guard, an
All-Star. Charlie Ward and Howard Eisley competed hard every night. But Marbury
was an All-Star point guard. It's hard to get guys of that caliber."

Added Chaney, "I made a statement before I got fired. We'd definitely make the
playoffs. I felt positive I would've made it once Marbury got there."

Tomorrow, the Knicks face the Rockets in Houston, pitting Chaney's successor,
Lenny Wilkens, against Chaney's predecessor, Jeff Van Gundy. Chaney, who lives
in Houston's outskirts, will not attend.

Chaney can't fathom why Thomas so quickly determined they couldn't work
together. Though Thomas is a hands-on GM, Chaney said he's not opposed to that.

"He's a different type of general manager," Chaney said. "He's one that's
involved. I knew that when he came in. It all depends on the relationship. They
figured it out right away they wanted to make a change. We could've worked it
out. They decided differently."

The Knicks are paying off the final year of Chaney's contract, about $3 million.
Last May, Paul Silas offered him an assistant's job in Cleveland, but Chaney
declined.

"I'm looking for a head-coaching job," said Chaney, whose Knick record was
72-112. "I don't think I'll have a problem coming back as an assistant. I'm
still going to pursue being a head coach."

Chaney avoided phone calls from Knicks owner James Dolan in the aftermath of his
dismissal. Chaney showed up for that night's game, was fired two hours before
tip-off and escorted out of the Garden.

Chaney called the way it was handled "bothersome" but has since forgiven Dolan,
once his biggest supporter.

"I wanted to remove myself for a while. And I did," Chaney said. "I have a great
deal of respect for [Dolan]. I consider him a friend. We've had great
conversations during my time there."

Chaney said Thomas never called. "I didn't expect him do," Chaney said. "It's
not who he is."

As for Wilkens, Chaney said, "I think he's going a great job, he's good for the
team, very experienced. I respect him a great deal."

This is the first time in 35 years, since entering the NBA in 1969, that
Chaney's missed a season. "I've been spoiled I've been in the league since I
joined," he said. "I miss it."

I'd like a shot to coach the Knicks with Marbury too. The problem is, like Don Chaney, I've done nothing to earn it.

Chaney has always been a classy guy, kind of like Art Howe was for the Mets, but perhaps to a fault. He was too loyal to some players (Eisley), even when they weren't doing the team any good. I agree with him on this count though. He ought to have at least gotten a chance to coach a few more games with Marbury. His time was probably up, but he deserved a little more than that. Oh well, at least we replaced with exactly the same type of coach, and it's worked out alright.