Former Utah Jazz Star Jeff Hornacek Already Facing Uphill Battle as Knicks Coach

Utah Jazz legend Jeff Hornacek, now charged with leading the New York Knicks back to prominence, may have found himself in another bad coaching situation.

If you’re a Utah Jazz fan of a certain age, you’ll probably always have a special place in your heart for Jeff Hornacek. In the 90’s, he was the team’s missing link; the final ingredient for the concoction that transformed the Jazz from that team that played really hard to the one that played for NBA championships.

He stepped away from the game for a time following his retirement in 2000, after which he joined the ranks of basketball’s coaching carousel. He was Andrei Kirilenko‘s personal shooting coach, an assistant on Tyrone Corbin’s doomed Jazz staff and both a Coach of the Year candidate and scapegoat during a stop with the Phoenix Suns.

Now, he’s found his way to the New York Knicks, who are set to square off with Quin Snyder’s up-and-coming Jazz crew on Sunday morning.

If ever there was a time when I, as a Jazz fan, could consider rooting against my own team’s cause, this would probably be it. Just a handful of games into his first season with the Knicks, our guy “Horny” could already use all the help he can get.

Strangely constructed though they may be, the Knicks are expected to get wins and challenge for a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. If Hornacek can’t make it happen, it’s probably a safe bet that Jazz-killer turned Knicks president Phil Jackson is going to be in team chairman James Dolan’s ear about finding someone who can.

The problem is that the Knicks may not be built for long-term (or even short-term) success.

There are things to like about the roster. Kristaps Porzingis is one of the league’s most exciting young stars. Players like Courtney Lee, Lance Thomas and Justin Holiday are true gamers. And while he’s getting long in the tooth, Carmelo Anthony continues to be one of the best pure scorers in the Association.

However, moves like the acquisition of broken down former Chicago Bulls stars Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah have been head-scratchers; the duo’s early success notwithstanding. Meanwhile, even as Anthony has continued to be effective on the hardwood, he’s struggled with injuries in recent years and will eat up nearly $80 million in cap space over the next three years.

The actual results on the court have been a mixed bag so far. The Knicks have captured good wins over the Chicago Bulls and Memphis Grizzlies, but are currently allowing nearly 110 points per game and getting outscored by more than seven points per 100 possessions.

Nevertheless, if anyone can make it all work in a strange situation, it’s Hornacek. He did it once before, leading a misfit mix of young guns and basketball vagabonds to a surprising 48-34 record in his first year in Phoenix.

The thing that gives me pause is what happened in the ensuing years.

Despite helping a roster thin on talent and smashed by injuries overachieve during his first and second seasons with the Suns, Hornacek ultimately became the fall guy for the failings of Suns GM Ryan McDonough and owner Robert Sarver — a guy that blames millennials for his team’s shortcomings — during year three.

While they have a rich history, the Knicks organization of today may be just as dysfunctional as the one Hornacek was fired by in February.

Dolan, who was once named the NBA’s worst owner by an ESPN panel, has a long history of missteps. He’s encouraged fans to go cheer for the Nets if they don’t like how things are going, allegedly made employees collect creepy audio recordings of Anthony during games and has signed off on a litany of questionable personnel moves.

More recently, he hired Isiah Thomas to help run the WNBA’s New York Liberty. The same Isiah Thomas that helped run the Knicks into the ground and was found liable for sexual harassment in the Anucha Browne Sanders case.

As for Jackson, word is that he’s already interfering with Hornacek’s coaching process. His insistence that the Knicks play a version of his old Triangle Offense and involvement in Knicks meetings and practices has drawn criticism from people around the league.

Former NBA coach/player Byron Scott told ESPN “If I was Jeff, I would be a little disappointed in Phil coming down and being in coaches meetings,” he said. “On the court advising players and things like that [is a problem] because you might have told a player one thing and now Phil goes over there and tells him something completely different.”

“You hired him to be your coach; let him be your coach.”

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Whether or not Hornacek ever gets a real chance to do so remains to be seen. In the meantime, his ability to get the most out of his strange team and stay afloat in the East throughout the season is going to be an uphill battle.

With a wildcard in the owner’s box, Jackson potentially undermining his authority and the Knicks already lacking consistency on both sides of the ball, there’s no telling how it’s going to play out.

As a thirty-something Jazz fan with strong memories of No. 14’s exploits, I’m more than a little concerned.