The New York Knicks have hired former Cleveland Cavaliers coach David Blatt as a basketball operations consultant, the team announced Wednesday.
Most NBA fans will remember Blatt from his tenure with LeBron James and the Cavs. Blatt was hired as head coach of the team in 2014. However, he was released halfway through Cleveland's 2016 championship season, and Tyronn Lue took the reigns. Despite this fact, the Cavs later sent the 60-year-old play caller a ring for his services in that campaign.
After his stint with the Cavs, Blatt returned to Europe and coached Darüşşafaka of the Turkish Super League, as well as Olympiacos of the Greek Basket League. He won't be calling plays for the Knicks, though. Instead, he'll serve as a basketball operations consultant.
Blatt and Knicks president Steve Mills already share a common bond, as they were teammates at Princeton. They remain close friends to this day.
The Knicks have struggled to find any sort of a rhythm this season, as their 7-21 overall record can attest. New York actually fired head coach David Fizdale after a 4–19 start to the season. Now, it's interim coach Mike Miller at the helm.
Interestingly, New York has won three of their last four games after dropping 10 straight. They'll look to claim another win on Friday night, when they take on the Miami Heat inside AmericanAirlines Arena.