After the New York Knicks dismissed Tom Thibodeau following their best season in decades, several quality candidates are in line to replace him. Among those trying to enter the fray is a born-and-bred New Yorker with some notable Laker ties.
Former Lakers Champion Vying for Coveted Coaching Job
Metta Sandiford-Artest Campaigning for Knicks Gig
In a series of posts not long after Thibodeau’s departure, New York native, 2010 NBA champion, and former Laker Metta Sandiford-Artest pushed for consideration of the Knicks opening. It began with a Tuesday evening post that read in part, “And now It’s time. NYC bred time.” Artest continued to put himself out there as a viable candidate, touting his New York roots in a campaign that’s over 12 hours strong.
Exactly. #since1999
Not only fan, not only a real nyc street kid, but an nyc winner. You see how they setting the narrative. We don’t agree. We ready to go baby.NYC – we got a full 360 degree history. Deeper than all that. It’s time. NYC https://t.co/NEndPp3pun
— Coach Metta (@MettaWorld37) June 4, 2025
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A 17-year NBA veteran, Sandiford-Artest played for six teams with numerous accolades to show for it, including the aforementioned NBA title with the Lakers, the franchise which he spent the most time with (six seasons—2009-2013 and 2015-2017). In 991 career games, he averaged 13.2 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.7 assists on .414/.339/.715 splits.
Three years ago, Sandiford-Artest expressed a desire to coach at the NBA level, but noted that he wouldn’t force the opportunity. In a Q&A with SNY’s Ian Begley, he said:
“I’m definitely trying to be a head coach one day in the NBA. I’m not really forcing it. I do have a couple people reaching out to different teams. But one day, I would love to be a head coach in the NBA. I still got a lot of unfinished business in terms of winning. Because of how I got suspended, I missed out on All-Star Games, I missed out on All-Defensive First Teams, I missed out on more championships. So I’m still motivated. … I’m just as motivated as I was when I was a 15-year-old kid in the streets. One day I do wanna win a title as an NBA head coach. That’s my intentions.”
Metta Aiming to Continue Player-Turned-Coach Pipeline
Sandiford-Artest is boldly attempting to add his name to a unique list: former players who began coaching with little, if any, experience. Three other former Lakers soon became first-time head coaches (Steve Nash, Derek Fisher and Magic Johnson), and their stints were relatively brief. The last ex-player to carry that torch was current Lakers head coach JJ Redick, whose playing and coaching careers were separated by a brief stint in sports media.
It seems Sandiford-Artest is attempting to follow a similar playbook to Redick, albeit with very clear differences. Apart from playing in the same era (early 2000s/2010s), holding extensive knowledge of the game, and co-founding sports-focused ventures (Redick in podcasting and Sandiford-Artest in technology), Metta has been more present on social media than in broadcast media, and, unlike Redick, he’s advocating to lead a team he once played for. He also has one thing going for him that Redick didn’t have before being hired by the Lakers.
Metta had just one stint on the sidelines after he hung up his jersey: as a player development coach with LA’s G League affiliate for the 2017-18 season. In that sense, he’s familiar with coaching responsibilities in the league and has the passion and hometown roots that would help him in New York. However, he’s still a long-shot candidate to succeed Thibodeau—no matter how many posts he publishes to X or how many endorsements he receives.
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