Pablo Prigioni on Knicks' Radar for Mike Brown’s Coaching Staff
The Knicks requested and received permission to speak with Minnesota assistant Pablo Prigioni about a position on newly hired coach Mike Brown's staff.
The revelation was first reported by SNY and confirmed by The Post by a league source.
Prigioni is a former point guard with a solid reputation in NBA circles for his expertise.
The 48-year-old has spent the last six seasons as the Timberwolves' offensive coordinator, conceiving methods and developing an arsenal based on spacing and 3-pointers.
For the first two, he developed a relationship with Karl-Anthony Towns, who was dealt to the Knicks in October.
The Argentine is also familiar with New York, having played at the Garden from 2012 to 2015.
Prigioni set an NBA record as the league's oldest rookie when he made his debut with the Knicks at the age of 35.
He also worked as an assistant coach for the Nets in 2018-19, when they finally made it to the playoffs after a long absence.
Prigioni has been an assistant with the Timberwolves since leaving the Nets.
But he could be returning to New York, as Brown requested and received permission to talk with him about a position on his new staff.
Given the sloppy nature of their coaching search, simply being allowed to speak with a candidate may appear to be a victory for the Knicks.
After abruptly firing Tom Thibodeau after he led them to the Eastern Conference finals, they were denied permission to interview Dallas' Jason Kidd, Houston's Ime Udoka, Atlanta's Quin Snyder, and Minnesota's Chris Finch, Prigioni's boss.
Granted, they're all head coaches.
The Knicks also expressed interest in hiring New Orleans' James Borrego as Brown's lead assistant, but the Pelicans reportedly prefer to keep him as Willie Green's top assistant.
Brown is given the authority to choose his assistants. However, numerous Thibodeau staff members are anticipated to return, including Mark Bryant, Maurice Cheeks, Darren Erman, and Rick Brunson, Thibodeau's former associate head coach.