After roughly 18 months out of the NBA, David Fizdale has resurfaced.
The former Knicks head coach will be joining the Lakers as an assistant following Jason Kidd’s departure to take the Mavericks’ head-coaching job, according to ESPN.
The move reunites Fizdale with LeBron James, whom Fizdale coached as a Heat assistant during James’ four seasons in Miami.
Fizdale coached the Knicks from 2018-19, going 17-65 (.207) in first season before a 4-18 to start his second season got him fired.
The 47-year-old recently revealed to The Undefeated that he “was at the lowest place I’ve ever been from a mental health standpoint” after he was fired by the Knicks.
“I thought the lowest point was during the losses,” Fizdale told the website. “But it was after, when you go through the whole part of, ‘What could I have done different? Did I even deserve this job?’ You think like you were an imposter. You felt like you got over on these people. You’re a fraud.”
A college assistant for six years, Fizdale entered the NBA when he joined Golden State as an assistant between in 2003 before spending four years with the Hawks.
He joined the Heat in 2008 and spent eight seasons with Miami before landing his first NBA head-coaching position with the Grizzlies. His tenure in Memphis was less than stellar, going 43-39 his first season and 7-12 before he was fired in his second.