Like many New Yorkers, Jon Stewart is a tortured Knicks fan. The longtime “Daily Show” host, who now hosts Apple TV’s “The Problem with Jon Stewart,” was famously caught on camera in 2018 looking like he just heard the worst news of his life after then-Dubs big man JaVale McGee nailed a fadeaway at Madison Square Garden.
On a recent episode of his Apple TV show, Stewart brought on Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr, perhaps attempting a belated recruiting pitch on behalf of his hometown team. Kerr, as you may remember, chose the Golden State coaching job over the Knicks job back in 2014, a decision that’s worked out quite nicely for him.
As Kerr told Stewart, the Warriors were just a better option, despite Kerr’s close ties to then-team president Phil Jackson. He pointed out that talent is the most important determining factor when debating between head coach openings, and Golden State clearly had more talent.
“One of my good friends said, ‘Which job do you think Phil [Jackson] would take?'” Kerr said. He went with the roster that had future Hall of Famers Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green. Jackson, of course, coached his share of Hall of Famers during separate Bulls and Lakers dynasties.
It wasn’t just that the Warriors opening was appetizing, Kerr continued. The Knicks opening, even with Jackson in place, was tenuous at best.
“Honestly, if I had taken the Knicks job, I would’ve been spun through that cycle and gone within two years, guaranteed,” Kerr concluded. Jackson ultimately hired Derek Fisher, who lasted one-and-a-half seasons before he was fired.
Kerr’s assertion probably doesn’t make Stewart feel any better about his team’s missed opportunity, even if Kerr is right.