Former Knicks All-Star Mark Jackson Responds to Rick Pitino's Endorsement for HC Job

Jackson hasn't held a coaching job since being fired by the Warriors in 2014.

Former Warriors coach and Knicks guard Mark Jackson was floated by his former New York coach Rick Pitino for the Knicks job. / Kelley L Cox-Imagn Images

The New York Knicks are still looking for their next coach, after getting rejected by a number of franchises for the chance to interview other current head coaches for the job last held by Tom Thibodeau. Former Knicks coach Rick Pitino, now the head man at fellow Madison Square Garden tenant St. John's, shut down any thought that he'd return to the franchise he led from 1987 to '89.

He does have a candidate in mind for the job, however: former New York guard and Golden State Warriors coach Mark Jackson.

Pitino took to X (formerly Twitter) to promote the candidacy of Jackson, who played for Pitino at the start of his NBA career. Jackson hasn't held a coaching job since being fired by the Warriors, who replaced him with Steve Kerr in 2014, but he hasn't shied away from his desire to return to the sideline. When asked about Pitino's message during an interview on SiriusXM Friday, he certainly didn't reject the idea.

"He's one of the greatest coaches in the history of sports, not just basketball, and on top of that he's got great taste by that statement," Jackson said, eliciting chuckles.

Rick Pitino endorses Mark Jackson for the next Knicks head coaching job 👇@MarkJackson13 joins @TermineRadio & @JumpShot8 and responds to Pitino’s comments https://t.co/lr3hnZY5R8 pic.twitter.com/QzmF3kOUVL

— SiriusXM NBA Radio (@SiriusXMNBA) June 13, 2025

Jackson elevated Golden State to contender status during his three years leading the franchise, but never took the team past the conference semifinals. Kerr's immediate success with the Warriors, leading them to an NBA championship in his first season with the franchise, has likely hurt Jackson's reputation a bit.

Jackson's profile as a coach who elevated the team to contention, but wasn't the one to lead it to the promised land also calls into question why he would be the one to take a team to the next level after Thibodeau, whose extensive coaching history only lacks a championship.

He is a native New Yorker and a Knicks great, though, so there are certainly worse potential candidates, especially with how the franchise has struck out in trying to poach a big name thus far.

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