David Fizdale could be a dead man walking, according to a report.
ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski and Malika Andrews report that even prior to the strange Scott Perry and Steve Mills press conference on Sunday night following a blowout loss at the hands of the Cavaliers, the Knicks organization was beginning to "lay the internal groundwork" to fire the second-year coach.
According to the report, Mills was "selling" the idea that the current roster could be competitive in a weak Eastern Conference this season. So far, that hasn't been the case: The Knicks are 2-8 on the season and have been outscored 1,092-993.
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Mills, a Knicks front-office mainstay who has survived various administrations and incarnations of the much beleaguered New York franchise, could be on the hot seat as well, per a seperate report from The Athletic's Frank Isola.
Isola says the Knicks could make a run at Toronto Raptors president Masai Ujiri, which would be their second attempt to lure the exec in three years. Ujiri was the architect behind the Raptors' first NBA championship in the 2018-19 season.
Mills has a 48-126 record as Knicks preident following the ousting of Phil Jackson.
They have not played up to standard or expectation this season, and the shortcomings fall on the roster and its construction.
After missing out on both Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant this offseason after trading Kristaps Porzingis a few months prior, the Knicks' roster is in a state of limbo, with limited cornerstone pieces. The Knicks confusingly signed several power forwards: Marcus Morris, Bobby Portis, Taj Gibson and Julius Randle, who don't necessarily mesh well on the court.
Rookie sensation RJ Barrett has been one of the lone bright spots on the roster this season, but there are concerns over the heavy workload he's played early in the season.
Still, Barrett's success won't mean much for the Knicks — specifically Fizdale, Mills and Perry — if the results on the court stay the same.
