DALLAS — Rick Carlisle didn’t have much to do with the Mavericks whipping the Knicks 99-86 on April 2 at the Garden, but he enjoyed the experience while watching from his Manhattan hotel room.
Carlisle was in COVID-19 safety protocols that night and his assistant, Jamahl Mosley, a former Knicks coaching candidate, ran the Mavericks.
Friday, in the rematch at American Airlines Center in Dallas, Carlisle was back coaching, but the Knicks were missing a key component: swingman Alec Burks, who was back at the hotel after landing in COVID-19 protocols and is out indefinitely.
Carlisle, a former NBA small forward who played a season with the Knicks under Rick Pitino, said he truly enjoyed watching the April 2 telecast.
“I love watching the Knicks broadcast whether it’s Mike Breen or Kenny Albert,’’ Carlisle said Friday before the Knicks and Mavericks faced off. “He’s great. Clyde Frazier — I’d pay money to listen to him broadcast a game. He’s so awesome. It was interesting — the thing I got out of it when you listen to the other team’s broadcast — you get some interesting perspective on your team. I tried to make the best of it and obviously really pleased with how the game went.’’
Rick Carlisle and Walt Frazier Getty Images (2)Dinner didn’t go as well as the game-watching experience during his hotel quarantine.
“We were in a great hotel,’’ Carlisle said. “I talked to my trainer when the word came down I had to stay in the hotel for the game. I said what about meals? He said just order room service and keep it on your room bill. At 6:30, I called room service and they said room service is closed. That wasn’t good. I had to figure something else out.’’
Carlisle didn’t say what he did for dinner, but the NBA allowed him to coach the next game, April 3 at Washington. The league said Carlisle’s test was a “false positive.’’
