Should New York Knicks Let Assistant Coach Herb Williams Take Over?

New York Knicks head coach Mike Woodson has his days numbered as a member of the coaching staff, but there is no point in bringing in anybody to replace him from outside the organization. Current assistant coach Herb Williams has twice taken over the club during his tenure with the Knicks in 2004 and 2005. He should finish the season as the head coach, and depending what happens this offseason, continue running the show next season.

Williams’ record as a head coach is 17-28, but as an interim, expectations aren’t really abound and are typically appointed when teams are in bad shape — so it’s by no means an indication of his coaching abilities. The Knicks shouldn’t hand him the keys to the car for basketball reasons, only for logistical reasons.

First and foremost, they shouldn’t force Woodson into finishing out the season; he deserves to be relieved of his duties. The team has given up and it’s unfair to put the blame on Woodson for a single game longer.

Secondly, the Knicks need to clean up shop this offseason and start anew in the 2014-15 NBA season. Bringing in a new coach now would be foolish. There is no one out there who can rally this team into the playoffs this year, so it’d be a waste of money to pay two coaches for the same result. Considering it’d be unlikely that they could bring in anyone who would want to stay during a rebuilding phase in New York, promoting Williams makes a lot of sense at least for next season while the Knicks wait out several large expiring contracts.

The term rebuilding doesn’t really float the boats of Knicks fans, but it’s quickly becoming a reality. It’s all but signed, sealed and delivered that Carmelo Anthony is going to depart the team in free agency this summer, so the Knicks have an opportunity to build up the team naturally.

Williams has been with the club for over a decade and knows the ins and outs of the organization. He should be given a chance to prove he is capable of more than sitting next to the man running the show. In the worse-case scenario, he is replaced this offseason if the Knicks somehow create magic and put together a winning squad. Then and only then would it make sense to go out and spend money on a big-name coach.

Kellin Bliss is a New York Knicks writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter or “Like” him on Facebook.