NEW YORK: The slumping New York Knicks sacked Derek Fisher on Monday, promoting Kurt Rambis to the job of interim head coach in a bid to reverse their sagging NBA fortunes.
The move, announced by Knicks president Phil Jackson in a statement posted on the team's website, comes a day after the Knicks fell 101-96 to the Denver Nuggets at Madison Square Garden -- the Knicks' season-high fifth straight defeat and their ninth defeat in their last 10 games.
"We have never been truly consistent," Fisher admitted Sunday night. "The reality is that we have chances to win these games, but we are not winning them."
Fisher was hired on June 10, 2014, when he was tapped by his former Los Angeles Lakers coach Jackson when the Knicks were unable to lure Steve Kerr -- who instead coached the Golden State Warriors to last season's NBA title.
Fisher finishes his Knicks coaching career with an overall record of 40-96.
The Knicks have shown vast improvement from their 17-65 campaign of 2014-15, but they have veered off course in recent weeks and fallen from playoff contention to 12th in the Eastern Conference -- five games behind the number eight team.
Rambis, who was serving as associate coach, becomes the 27th head coach in franchise history. His 18 years of NBA coaching experience include a stint as head coach of the Minnesota Timberwolves in the 2009-10 and 2010-11 seasons.
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