Knicks hire former Clippers assistant for same role

The Knicks are hiring former Clippers assistant coach Brendan O’Connor, ESPN’s Frank Isola reports (via Twitter). O’Connor previously served for the Pistons under Larry Brown where he established and maintained a close relationship with New York executive William Wesley.

O’Connor will act as defensive coordinator for the Knicks, the New York Post’s Stefan Bondy tweets. O’Connor had been with the Clippers since the 2013-14 season. Before that, he had been part of the Pistons and Nets.

“A hell of a basketball coach and a great guy. Knicks just made their best offseason acquisition,” a Western Conference executive said to SNY’s Ian Begley (Twitter link).

The Knicks are still looking for an associate head coach to help with the team’s offense. Attempts to bring on James Borrego, Jay Triano and Pablo Prigioni were unsuccessful. The Clippers ranked fourth in defense last season.