TANKWATCH 1/30: Coaching changes and old rivals

The Knicks got the tank back on track Thursday night when they completely forgot how to play basketball for the second and third quarters of their loss to the Indiana Pacers, but there is still work to be done. Fortunately they haven't climbed too far ahead of Minnesota in the updated tank standings, courtesy of Tankathon:

TANK NEWS:

- Get ready for the Grandaddy of them all Friday night as the Philadelphia 76ers take on the Minnesota Timberwolves. No matter who loses, the Knicks win!

I suppose if you had to root for one team to win, it would be Minnesota. They have the tougher Western Conference schedule, and Ricky Rubio is still out indefinitely. They do have Nikola Pekovic and Kevin Martin back, so hopefully they can go on a nice little winning streak.

- Earlier this week the Orlando Magic suffered the indignity of losing to the Knicks. They are in the midst of a seven-game losing streak and head coach Jacque Vaughn's job could be in jeopardy, per SAUCES:

Sources say reports out of Orlando that coach Jacque Vaughn is on verge of being fired are accurate

— Chris Broussard (@Chris_Broussard) January 30, 2015

There are rumors that the Magic could bring in Scott Skiles, who has head coaching experience and was surprisingly good as Robert De Niro's second-in-command in Casino:

Underappreciated aspect of Scott Skiles: He's turning into Don Rickles. pic.twitter.com/Ii6Dlw13Wz

— Triangle Offense (@Tri_Offense) January 30, 2015

Skiles should be able to wring a few more wins out of the Magic before they inevitably mutiny, so this can only help the Knicks.

NEXT WEEK'S SCHEDULE:

Only two games between now and next Friday, but they're big ones. While I don't believe the draft lottery is fixed (That's absurd), I do know in my heart that dark magical forces love the Celtics and Lakers and despise the Knicks (That's just common sense). The Knicks simply cannot allow these bastards more ping-pong balls.

Lock it up, Knicks. Lock. It. Up.