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We here at P&T have provided coverage of Frank Vogel's departure from the Indiana Pacers with the underlying hope that our own New York Knicks would at least reach out to the coach. Well the front office has done just that, per Marc Berman:
According to the source, Knicks GM Steve Mills has done his due diligence in contacting Vogel's reps. He expressed that Phil Jackson has not made a decision on how to proceed. The key to the phone call was finding out whether Vogel would have interest in the job, and it seems he does.
"I think the Knicks wanted to see where Frank's head is at," the source said.
Good coach becomes available on Thursday, Knicks contact him on Friday -- a fan could get used to this kind of promptness! It is a basic step, but it is a step farther than they have gone with many other candidates. Don't read too much into the fact that it was Steve Mills making the call; Mills has been the point man on pretty much every matter of business that didn't directly involve a close Phil Jackson companion. If a formal interview happens, Phil and Mills will assuredly both take part.
Vogel is ready to take his time before jumping back into the job hunt -- that might hurt his chances with more eager franchises, but it probably won't scare off the extremely deliberate Zen Master. Hey, the timelines might actually line up in New York's favor for once!