Hornacek: Phil firing is ‘tough day for us’

ORLANDO, Fla. — A somber and shakenlooking Knicks coach Jeff Hornacek t ha nked Phi l Jackson for hiring him 13 months ago and called it “a tough day for us.’’

Speaking at the end of the Knicks’ first summer-league practice, Hornacek would not take questions from the media, only making a quick statement about Jackson’s sudden firing Wednesday morning. Hornacek, hired in May 2016, will stay in his position. General manager Steve Mills takes over dayto-day operations for the franchise.

“It’ s always an interes ting time when stuff like that happens,’’ Hornacek said in a low voice. “I just want to thank Phil for giving me the opportunity here in New York. I worked with Steve all year long. We had a great working relationship and talking about things. We’ll continue to do that.

“I wish Phil the best from this point on. It’s a tough day for us, but our focus is to get this team better, continue to build our young players and f igure out a way to win. We have a lot of time before the regular season to figure that out.”

Asked if the triangle will be any part of the offense, Hornacek demurred.

“That’s all I’m going to say,’’ he said.

Mills had not yet joined the club in Orlando. Sources indicated the triangle will no longer be a mandate, as a new president may be hi re d, poss i bly Masai Ujiri of the Raptors.

Hornacek ran a hightempo offense in Phoenix and tried blending that with triangle principles in his rookie season with the Knicks before Jackson intervened in February.

Knicks rookie point guard Frank Ntilikina, Jack- son’s lottery selection from six days ago, could be seen with a big ice pack on his right knee and limping leaving the gym. He was not permitted to talk to the media.

“We’ll talk about those g uys [Thursday],’’ Hornacek said when asked whether Ntilikina suffered an injury in his first Knicks practice.