David Fizdale firing: Gregg Popovich, Steve Kerr criticize Knicks over the coach's sacking

San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich and his Golden State Warriors counterpart Steve Kerr have come out in support of former New York Knicks coach David Fizdale. Fizdale was fired on Friday following the team's poor start to the season. While speaking to NBA.com, Popovich said it was "ridiculous" the Knicks gave up on Fizdale in the early part of his second season.

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David Fizdale fired by New York Knicks 

Fizdale's win percentage of 20.2% with the team is the fifth-worst by any team having played a minimum of 100 games over the last 30 NBA seasons. The Knicks hired the former Memphis Grizzlies coach in 2018 but the 45-year-old won only 21 out of 104 games in less than two seasons at the helm. The Knicks have not made the playoffs since 2012-13.

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NBA: Gregg Popovich on David Fizdale firing

Speaking about the whole issue, Popovich said he doesn't know where the decision was made to fire coach Fizdale. But if it came from the top, it is a case of mistaken identity. According to the Spurs coach, Fizdale is a fine, talented young coach with a great pedigree and added that it is ridiculous to think that a young guy roped in will fix everything in a minute or season and a half.

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NBA: Steve Kerr on David Fizdale firing

Warriors coach Steve Kerr's side Golden State Warriors are also going through their worst season, but he said that he is happy for not choosing the Knicks. Kerr was wanted by the Knicks in 2014, but the former Chicago Bulls guard opted for the Warriors. He said that if he had gone to New York, that would’ve been him like three years ago. He said that it is just the way it goes and he made the right choice by not going there.

He also added that this business is extremely fragile and the job of a coach is dependent on various factors. Firstly, a coach must have a vast and good quality of talent to manage, Secondly, the strength of the organisation and the group around the coach matters as well. So when difficult times come, the organization's relationship with the coach and understanding of the nature of the sport determines the duration of their stay.

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NBA: David Fizdale's career with New York Knicks

Fizdale's team Knicks have a 4–18 win/loss record and have lost 8 straight games. The Warriors (4–19) are the only team with a worse record in the NBA this season. Fizdale went 17-65 last season and even missed out on landing free agents such as Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. The team didn't even win the NBA draft lottery to land Zion Williamson.