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| NEW YORK -- Mike Woodson had the Knicks on top of their division and in the second round of the playoffs, destinations that had become unreachable and practically unimaginable in New York. Matt Andriese Jersey . A year later, he was out of job. Phil Jackson fired Woodson and the entire coaching staff on Monday, making his first big move since becoming team president in March and saying in a statement that "the time has come for change throughout the franchise." The dismissal comes shortly after the Knicks completed a 37-45 season that began with their belief they were a serious contender. Instead, they started poorly, making Woodsons job security practically a season-long distraction. A late surge wasnt good enough for a post-season spot or another year for Woodson. It was a stunningly swift fall for Woodson, whose .580 winning percentage with the Knicks ranks behind only Pat Riley and Jeff Van Gundy, and who finished third in the NBAs Coach of the Year voting after going 54-28 last season. He and the staff were informed of the decision Monday morning by Jackson, the man the Knicks originally wanted to replace Woodson as coach but preferred to run the teams front office. Jackson has won an NBA-record 11 championships as a coach. He has repeatedly said hes not interested in returning to the bench, so he will have to hire someone before he turns his attention to the roster. The team said the coaching search begins immediately. Jackson said he has a "tremendous amount of respect" for Woodson and his staff, which included longtime Knicks assistant Herb Williams. Jackson called this an "extremely difficult" season and said "blame should not be put on one individual." "But the time has come for change throughout the franchise as we start the journey to assess and build this team for next season and beyond," he added. Jackson has said he wont insist the Knicks run the triangle, the offensive system he used in Chicago and with the Lakers, but has made clear his belief in it. TNT analyst Steve Kerr, who played for Jackson with the Bulls but has never been a coach, has repeatedly been mentioned as a top candidate. Kerr said Monday during his SiriusXM NBA Radio show that he and Jackson have remained close and that he expected to speak with him at some point about the job. "Its going to be very interesting and obviously my name is being thrown around. I do anticipate at least being part of the conversation and well see where it all goes," Kerr said. Jackson is scheduled to speak with reporters on Wednesday. Woodson, a former Knicks first-round draft pick, was hired as an assistant coach before the 2011-12 season, then engineered an 18-6 finish after replacing Mike DAntoni on an interim basis the following March to capture a playoff spot. Given a multiyear deal two months later, Woodson then led the Knicks to their first Atlantic Division championship since 1994. New York then beat Boston in the playoffs, its first series victory since 2000, and general manager Steve Mills picked up next seasons option year on Woodsons contract before this season began. But the Knicks were saddled with some early injuries, including centre Tyson Chandlers broken leg, and lacked the veteran leadership they enjoyed last season. Madison Square Garden chairman James Dolan was already considering replacing Woodson by December, when he met with Jackson at a holiday party and talked to him about coaching the team. Carmelo Anthony praised his coach Thursday and even offered to back him publicly if necessary. But it was probably a clear sign Woodson wouldnt be back a few minutes later when Amare Stoudemire said the coach hadnt taken part in the exit meetings with players that Jackson and Mills held. Woodson previously coached six seasons with the Atlanta Hawks, leading them to the playoffs in his final three seasons. He has a career record of 315-365. Woodson went 109-79 with the Knicks, who hadnt even made the playoffs since 2004 before he led them there in 2012. But he lost one of his biggest supporters within the organization when general manager Glen Grunwald, Woodsons college teammate at Indiana, was surprisingly fired last September. Players and fans sometimes grumbled during the season about Woodsons strategies as the defence regressed and the offence was inconsistent beyond Anthony, who plans to become a free agent in July. Chandler said there probably was some "disconnect" and "misunderstanding" at times. "Coach Woodson put together a game plan for us on the basketball court and there were times we didnt totally buy into it," Stoudemire said last week. Still, the Knicks nearly rallied to make the playoffs by winning 16 of their final 21 games. But Woodson, who said he and Jackson had only brief chats in Jacksons first month in charge, said before the season finale he knew the coach often takes the blame. "Everyone in this franchise owes a great deal of gratitude to what Mike and his staff have done," Jackson said. "We wish him the best." C. J. Cron Jersey .B. -- Canadian pairs skaters Meagan Duhamel and Eric Radford went from elated to frustrated in the span of a few minutes. Matt Duffy Jersey . -- With the Memphis Grizzlies struggling to find their offensive rhythm, O. http://www.officialraysgearshop.com/Rays-Dustin-Mcgowan-Kids-Jersey/ . Hes recovered from a scary injury and cleared to play. Mingo, who was hospitalized with a bruised lung he sustained in an Aug.BRISBANE, Australia -- Jack Brabham, the three-time Formula One champion who famously pushed his car to the finish line to claim his first season title, died Monday at his Gold Coast home. He was 88. The Australian driver -- known as Sir Jack in racing paddocks around the world after he was knighted in 1979 -- won world titles in 1959 and 1960 and became the only F1 driver to win a world championship in a car of his own construction -- the rear-engined BT19 -- which he drove to the title in 1966. The following year the Brabham team won its second successive world championship when New Zealander Denny Hulme drove the BT20 to victory. Brabham won his final Grand Prix race in South Africa in 1970 before retiring from F1 at the age of 44. Brabham continued to compete at different venues after his F1 retirement and his three sons, Geoff, Gary and David also had professional racing careers. Two of his grandsons, Matthew and Sam, are racing in the U.S. and Britain. "Its a very sad day for all of us," Brabhams youngest son, David, said in a statement. "He lived an incredible life, achieving more than anyone would ever dream of and he will continue to live on through the astounding legacy he leaves behind." The family said Brabham was a brilliant engineer, and technological innovations developed by the Brabham team helped to shape F1. In March 2009, David Brabham helped celebrate a 50-year anniversary for his father. Sebring International Raceway in Florida was the venue where Jack Brabham wrapped up his first Formula 1 championship on Dec. 12, 1959, pushing his Cooper-Climax T51 across the finish line for a fourth-place finish. "I was leading the race right up to the last 500 yards and the car ran out of petrol," Brabham said in an interview with The Associated Press at his home on the Gold Coast, Queensland state, in 2009. "I coasted to about 50 yards away and I pushed the car over the line. If I would have received any assistance I would have been disqualified. I managed to finish fourth, which was enough to win the championship." That race was won by Brabhams close friend, business associate and race-car designer Bruce McLaren of New Zealand. Brabham was not well enough to make the Sebring trip in 2009, but David re-enacted his fathers famous finish and also drove a handful of laps in the same car in which his father won that 1959 championship. Jack Brabhams career accomplishments were lengthy. In addition to his three world titles and 126 races from 1955 to 1970, he won the constructors championship in 1966 and 1967. He had 14 Grand Prix wins and 31 podium finishes. Australian Grand Prix chairman Ron Walker said Brabham would be "remembered as one of motorsports most influential figures" adding that his feat of winning the world championship in a car bearing his own name was unlikely to ever be replicated. "The contributions that Sir Jack made to the sport as wwell as the Australian Grand Prix will never be forgotten and his legacy will continue to resonate among drivers and fans," Walker said. Custom Tampa Bay Rays Jerseys. . Born on April 2, 1926, in the southern Sydney suburb of Hurstville, John Arthur Brabham grew up driving and maintaining his fathers fruit and vegetable delivery vehicles. After a brief career in engineering, he joined the Australian Air Force as a flight mechanic and later set up his own engineering works in Sydney and became a pilot. He won four Australian championships between 1948 and 1951. In 1955, Brabham moved to England and teamed up with John and Charles Cooper to make his Grand Prix debut at Aintree, England. He returned to Australia after he retired and his new interests included developing a farm, car dealership and aviation company. He was also a spokesman for a major Japanese automaker and maintained his interest in the sport, visiting numerous major international races. "On track he was always the toughest of tough competitors, tough sometimes to the point at which Id wonder how could such a nice bloke out of a car grow such horns and a tail inside one!" British great Stirling Moss wrote about Brabham in the introduction to a book about one of his biggest race rivals. "If you ever raced against Jack youd really know youd been in a race ... (he) played the game as if your life depends on it, no quarter asked, and absolutely none given. To his natural driving ability he added a deeper technical understanding." "That was a reasonable comment," Brabham told the AP, smiling, when he read the excerpt. Indianapolis Motor Speedway President J. Douglas Boles described Brabham, a four-time Indianapolis 500 starter, as "the patriarch of a racing dynasty." "Every time an Indy car runs at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, you can find roots that trace back to Jack Brabhams rear-engined Cooper Climax T54 that he drove to 9th place in the 1961 Indianapolis 500," Boles said. "In addition to starting the rear-engine revolution at IMS, Brabham competed ... and designed race cars that competed in the 500." Later in life, Brabham suffered from poor hearing and macular degeneration that prevented him from reading road signs, making driving difficult. He said a kidney illness "really clipped my wings," but he lived a busy life in a home overlooking the eighth hole of a resort golf course and sprinkled with mementos of his feats. Those included a glass-encased model replica of the Cooper Climax that he pushed over that Sebring finish line, and photos of the great driver with prime ministers, sporting personalities and fellow competitors. "The big aim now is to go out without an enemy in the world -- Im going to outlive," them he said in the 2009 interview. He is survived by his second wife, Margaret, and his three sons. AP Sports Writer John Pye contributed to this report. ' ' ' |
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