Mike Woodson is out of a job. As his first big move as the new team president of the New York Knicks, Phil Jackson fired the Knicks’ two-season coach Monday morning. According to New York’s Daily News, Jackson said in a statement, “The time has come for change throughout the franchise.”
Woodson, a former Knick himself, was hired as an assistant coach during the 2011-12 season and eventually went on to replace Mike D’Antoni. Everything seemed to be going well for the Knicks last year, when Woodson led them to a 54-28 record and the team’s first Atlantic Division championship since 1994. The 2013-14 season, however, was a tough one for the Knicks. Their dismal 37-45 couldn’t even buy the team a playoff spot.
After realizing all was lost for the season, Woodson admitted his failures. “You can point the fingers in a lot of directions. And I’m not going to sit here and air that out. At the end of the day I’m the coach, and I didn’t get it done. It’s just that simple,” he said last week. “Being the coach, I just apologize to the fans … We dug a hole early and then tried to make a major push here at the end to get in, and we just didn’t get it done.”
Commentary following Woodson’s firing has heated up social media all morning:
Woodson’s coaching career includes six seasons with the Atlanta Hawks, who had three playoff appearances under his leadership. He has a career record of 315-365.
Yesha Callahan is editor of The Grapevine and a staff writer at The Root. Follow her on Twitter.