When the Knicks hired Kenny Payne away from Kentucky this week, he was another example of new leaders Leon Rose is William Wesley bring on board someone with whom they have a pre-existing relationship. However, the Kentucky head coach Giovanni Calipari tells Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News that Payne was very capable of making the leap to the NBA with or without those connections.
“You have to understand, he was invited to four different NBA teams where they held their summer camp and did things and won there,” Calipari said of his longtime assistant. “And why do you think they’re taking him there? Trying to prove it. They want to see him teach, they want to see him interact. And those were some of the best franchises out there. I knew why they were doing it. And because we were paying him so much, none of them thought he was leaving (Kentucky) to go to the Knicks. Now they are pissed that they didn’t bring him in. … There were other franchises that would (hire) him. “
While Calipari may be right that other teams would have wanted to hire Payne before New York, it is unclear whether those clubs would have been willing to pay the price to bring him on board. According to Bondy (Link to Twitter), Payne will make over $ 1.5 million with the Knicks, making him one of the highest-paid assistants in the NBA.
Here’s more from the Atlantic:
- Two of the Raptors‘rotation key players, OG Anunoby (right knee pain) e Serge Ibaka (bruised right knee), he sat down again on Friday, but the MRI on his knees came back clean and coach Nick Nurse believes both players will be ready to start the playoffs on Monday, according to TSN.ca’s Josh Lewenberg (Link to Twitter).
- Raptors two-way player Paul Watson got a chance to play in Orlando and took advantage of the team’s last seed game on Friday, shedding 22 points in 27 minutes and impressing Nurse. “He’s pretty good. Can play “ The nurse said about Watson (Link to Twitter via Blake Murphy of The Athletic). “… It will be part of our future from what I can see so far.”
- Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer wonders if Ben Simmonsabsence in the playoffs could give the Sixers an opportunity to answer some annoying questions on their list. Even if Philadelphia are eliminated quickly, the team will have a chance to see what they look like when they mostly lean on Joel Embiid rather than balancing its two stars, O’Connor writes.
