Scoop B: Wally Szczerbiak is right! Knicks, David Fizdale should hire fmr. Hofstra standout & Long Island native Jay Hernandez as assistant coach

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Jay Hernandez
Former Orlando Magic assistant coach, Jay Hernandez is rising up the NBA coaching ranks. Photo courtesy of Gemini Keez/Keezcam

Former Orlando Magic assistant coach, Jay Hernandez talked coaching & more on Scoop B Radio with Brandon ‘Scoop B’ Robinson. Press Play Below To Listen!

Last week, the New York Knicks hired their new head coach in David Fizdale.

Fizdale, 43, will officially be announced as the new Knicks coach at a press conference as soon as Tuesday, according to the New York Post’s Marc Berman.

A hot commodity in the NBA, Fizdale was reportedly a shoe-in for other coaching vacancies that included the Orlando Magic, Atlanta Hawks and the Charlotte Hornets.

Take that for data!

A two-time NBA champion with the Miami Heat, Fizdale was a lead assistant under head coach Erik Spoelstra.

Fizdale’s credibility soared during the championship years with the South Beach cast that included LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh.

He’d leave and become head coach of the Memphis Grizzlies where he’d post a 50-51 record with Memphis.

While Fizdale is making moves to the Big Apple, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to seek out local talent in his coaching staff.

While Keith Smart, Juwan Howard and Nick Van Exel are favorites to land assistant coaching jobs under David Fizdale Knicks staff, don’t sleep on native New Yorker and former Orlando Magic assistant coach, Jay Hernandez.

In fact, retired NBA veteran and MSG Network analyst Wally Szczerbiak suggested it in a tweet last week.

A Long Island, NY native, Hernandez played at Hofstra University under current Villanova Wildcat head coach, Jay Wright.

This past season, Hernandez was an assistant coach under recently fired Orlando Magic head coach, Frank Vogel and was instrumental to Orlando’s player development, particularly in working with players before games and behind the scenes.  

Over the last few years, Hernandez gave up a personal basketball training business, Pro Hoops, which included clients such as Los Angeles Clippers forward, Tobias Harris and Charlotte Hornets All Star, Kemba Walker as clients.

Appearing on the Scoop B Radio Podcast last week, Hernandez said becoming a New York Knicks assistant be a dream. “Being apart of that with my family, being in New York, would be tremendous,” Jay Hernandez told me on Scoop B Radio.

“It’s the New York Knicks. You know it’s an amazing franchise, it’s a franchise I grew up really loving to go see games and to take the Long Island Railroad from Long Island to Penn Station and walk upstairs to go see the Knicks play against some of the best in the world. Obviously being a New York guy myself and having helped thousands of players in the New York, New Jersey area, obviously that would mean the world.”

Hernandez also talked about the current state of the Knicks and how’d he fit in right away:

I think they have a great young new list of players that I could work around,” he said.

“Guys like Porzingis who’s coming off an ACL and the stuff that I was able to implement with rehab recovery and on court work; again going back to being able to have the whole group incorporated into things that you’re doing from not only a player development standpoint, but also from a confidence standpoint. Rehabilitation is really important and obviously, I have a good relationship with KO [Kyle O’Quinn].  I have an affinity for New Yorkers and being a part of that with my family, being in New York, still would be tremendous.” 

 

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