The New York Knicks fired head coach Don Chaney and immediately announced 66-year-old Lenny Wilkens as his replacement Wednesday.
The Knicks were 15-24 this season under Chaney, 57, who had a 72-112 record after taking over from Jeff Van Gundy in December 2001.
PHOTO: AP
Assistant Herb Williams will coach the team Wednesday against Orlando at Madison Square Garden. Wilkens, the all-time winningest NBA coach with 1,292 victories, will take over today.
PHOTO: EPA
"I think he [Wilkens] is a perfect fit," team president Isiah Thomas told a news conference.
Assistant coaches Brendan Malone and Lon Kruger were also fired.
Seattle won the NBA championship in 1979 under Wilkens, whose record is 1,292-1,114 with the SuperSonics, Portland, Cleveland, Atlanta and Toronto.
He is one of only two coaches to lead four different teams to 100 wins.
In 1996, Wilkens coached the US Olympic team to the gold medal at the Atlanta Games. He mutually agreed to leave his position as head coach of Toronto after the 2002-2003 season following a three-year spell with the Raptors.
This will be his 31st season as a head coach in the NBA.
Wilkens is also one of only two men, John Wooden being the other, to have been enshrined in the basketball Hall of Fame as a player and coach.
The former point guard entered the Hall as a player in May 1989 and as a coach in October 1998.
The outgoing Knicks coach has recently come under heavy scrutiny with home fans chanting "fire Chaney."
Chaney, who joined New York's coaching staff in August 1995, was in his fourth head coaching stint. He won NBA Coach of the Year honors by leading the 1990-1991 Houston Rockets to a 52-30 record.
A media report earlier Wednesday said the Knicks would appoint former Cleveland and Atlanta coach Mike Fratello as Chaney's successor.
Thomas said he considered a number of options, including taking over the coaching duties himself.
"Don Chaney is a good man and he did his best for the Knicks ... but I felt a change was necessary," said Thomas.
"We considered a whole range of choices. We did not have negotiations with [Fratello] ... yes, I did think about [coaching] myself.
"But I never thought I would be able to get a Hall of Fame coach like Lenny Wilkens. The opportunity was too good."
Thomas refused to reveal details of Wilkens's contract but said it was not an interim measure designed to see the Knicks through to the end of the season.
knicks 120, Magic 110
Herb Williams made the most of his one game as Knicks coach, guiding New York to a 120-110 victory Wednesday night over the Orlando Magic just hours after Don Chaney was fired.
The game was almost an afterthought on another day of big changes for the Knicks.
Stephon Marbury had 26 points and 10 assists, Allan Houston scored 23 and Keith Van Horn had 22 as the Knicks surpassed 100 points for the second straight game and just the seventh time this season.
"I think we all understand that all our jobs are on the line," Knicks guard Penny Hardaway said. "There's no time to baby anybody. If you're not getting it done on a consistent basis, you will be moved."
Tracy McGrady had 28 points, nine assists and seven rebounds to lead Orlando, which lost its seventh straight on the road and for the eighth time in nine games overall.
Pistons 95, Raptors 91
In Auburn Hills, Michigan, Mehmet Okur scored a career-high 27 points and Detroit won its 10th straight with a comeback victory over Toronto.
After the start was delayed 29 minutes because of a snowstorm, Detroit rallied in the fourth quarter to extend its longest winning streak since winning 11 in a row during the 1990-91 season.
Richard Hamilton, who scored 27 points, made two mid-range jumpers and a free throw in the final minute to seal the win.
Vince Carter scored 27 points, and Donyell Marshall had 20 points and 16 rebounds for the Raptors.
Pistons star Ben Wallace was ejected late in the first half for arguing a call, then lightly kicking the ball down the court.
Rockets 95, Celtics 80
In Boston, Cuttino Mobley scored 24 points, and Yao Ming added 21 points and 15 rebounds to lead Houston past Boston.
The Rockets won their third straight road game and eclipsed 90 points for the fourth game in a row, their longest such streak this season. All four games have come following an 85-66 loss to Detroit on Jan. 7 in which Houston tied a franchise low for points.
The Rockets held Paul Pierce to a season-low four points on 1-of-10 shooting. Mike James led the Celtics with 20 points.
Pacers 85, Hawks 78
In Indianapolis, Reggie Miller scored 13 points, all in the fourth quarter, to lead Indiana over Atlanta.
Miller, who didn't score his first basket until there was 6:06 remaining, hit consecutive 3-pointers to give Indiana a 68-65 lead with 5:28 left. A third 3-pointer two minutes later put Indiana ahead by a point, and a six-point flurry from Jermaine O'Neal put the Pacers ahead for good.
O'Neal finished with 26 points and 16 rebounds. Ron Artest added 23 points -- the fifth straight game he's scored at least 20.
Shareef Abdur-Rahim led five Atlanta players in double figures with 16 points.
Nets 115, Wizards 103
In East Rutherford, New Jersey, Rodney Rogers, filling in for suspended forward Kenyon Martin, had 18 points and a season-high 13 rebounds to lift the New Jersey Nets over Washington.
Richard Jefferson scored 30 points, including a 41-foot, 3-point floater at the end of the third quarter, to help the Nets win for the eighth time in 10 games and the 14th time in their last 18.
Jason Kidd added 18 points, 13 assists and seven rebounds as the Nets set a season high for points in beating former assistant Eddie Jordan and his banged up Wizards for the third time this season.
Jordan didn't get to see the final 8:38 of the Wizards' season-high ninth straight road loss after he was ejected for arguing a non-call on a shot by Kwame Brown.
Timberwolves 100, Spurs 93
In San Antonio, Sam Cassell scored 33 points, including eight straight late in the fourth quarter, as Minnesota defeated San Antonio.
Kevin Garnett had 21 points and 10 rebounds for his NBA-leading 32nd double-double of the season. Latrell Sprewell added 23 points for the Timberwolves, who took over sole possession of first place in the Midwest Division from the Spurs.
Tim Duncan had 36 points and 20 rebounds for the Spurs but again struggled from the foul line, shooting just 8-of-15.
Mavericks 125, 76ers 122, 2OT
In Dallas, Michael Finley scored 32 points as Dallas beat Philadelphia in double overtime despite blowing a big lead in the fourth quarter for a second consecutive game.
Dirk Nowitzki scored five of his 25 points in the second overtime for Dallas, including the go-ahead jump shot with 24.1 seconds left.
Antoine Walker had his second straight triple-double with 11 points, 17 rebounds and 13 assists -- then fouled out with 41.8 seconds remaining in the second overtime.
The 76ers, who were missing injured starters Derrick Coleman and Kenny Thomas, got a season-high 24 points and 16 rebounds from Samuel Dalembert -- but he missed one of two free throws with 18.5 seconds left when he could've tied it at 122.
Allen Iverson had 31 points, eight rebounds and seven assists for the 76ers. Glenn Robinson had 34 points and seven rebounds.
Lakers 97, Nuggets 71
In Los Angeles, Slava Medvedenko had 22 points and nine rebounds, and Gary Payton added 21 points and six assists as Los Angeles beat the Nuggets for its third straight victory since an embarrassing 22-point loss in Denver last week.
The win was the 800th for Lakers coach Phil Jackson. He accomplished the feat in 1,101 games, making him the fastest to reach 800 wins in NBA history.
Playing without injured stars Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O'Neal and Karl Malone, the Lakers (24-11) took command by playing a near-flawless first half in taking a 55-35 lead. The Lakers had lost six of seven before winning their last three.
Voshon Lenard and Andre Miller led Denver with 15 points each. Rookie Carmelo Anthony shot a miserable 4-of-17 in scoring 14 for the Nuggets.
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