Prigioni may return to coach PGs
INDIANAPOLIS — The Knicks have three point guards aged 25-and-under who need grooming, particularly 2017 lottery pick Frank Ntiliikna and 2015 lottery pick Emmanuel Mudiay, who made his Knicks debut versus the Pacers Sunday.
As a result, the Knicks are considering bringing aboard former point guard Pablo Prigioni as a developmental coach, according to two industry sources.
Prigioni, 40, was on the most recent Knicks’ team to make the playoffs — his NBA rookie year in 2012-13 when the club went 54-28.
Team president Steve Mills offered Prigioni a job last summer, but he turned it down to become head coach of Baskonia of the Spanish League.
That lasted three weeks as Prigioni stepped down with a 2-6 record. According to a source, it was not just basketball but family issues that caused him to resign.
Prigioni, who played for the Knicks from 2012-15, was lauded for his cerebral game, his playmaking and ferocious on-ball defense during his career. He also played for the Rockets and Clippers, in the Spanish League and Argentina’s national team.
Bringing in Prigioni would be a coup to mentor Ntilikina, Mudiay and Trey Burke, the 25-year-old 2013 lottery pick whom the Knicks signed last month.
Prigioni is in New York this week after being invited by the Nets to spend a week with them. According to a source, he’s learning all phases of Brooklyn’s basketball operation.
It’s unclear if the Nets have interest in hiring Prigioni. They also have three intriguing point guards in D’Angelo Russell, Spencer Dinwiddie, and the injured Jeremy Lin. One source said Prigioni is “exploring” whether he has a desire to be a personnel man.
Last summer, the Knicks fired developmental coach Joshua Longstaff, considered Kristaps Porzingis’ guy, and never replaced him. Knicks coach Jeff Hornacek felt the team had enough assistants.
However, the league is turning more toward player development with the salary cap no longer rising, limiting free-agent additions.
Last summer, Mills hired Craig Robinson, his former Princeton teammate, away from the Bucks to be player development director.
Some NBA executives have observed the Knicks have a well-stocked scouting department under the new regime, but not enough developmental coaches. One NBA assistant recently pointed to Ntilikina’s modest development this season as perhaps a cause.