Mike Woodson has been linked to a handful of great defensive coaches, learning in college from Indiana’s Bobby Knight, as a rookie forward from Knicks legend Red Holzman and as a defensive assistant in winning an NBA championship with Hall of Famer Larry Brown in Detroit.
It is a solid pedigree to work the Garden sidelines and one that has earned him today’s announcement when the Knicks are expected to officially introduce Woodson as their permanent head coach — “interim’’ no more.
With Woodson piloting the Knicks to an 18-6 regular-season finish — the second-best record next to the Spurs over that span — team owner James Dolan never enacted his original plan of flirting with Phil Jackson, another Holzman disciple. Their 4-1 first-round flameout to Miami was never held against Woodson because of the mountain of injuries suffered in the series.
As lawyers hammered out the contract this week, Woodson likely will get a three-year deal and could receive a package worth more than $10 million — a lot cheaper than Jackson’s rate of $10 million per year. The Knicks will play it low key, with no press conference, just a conference call.
The only Woodson linkage causing concern to Knicks fans is Woodson’s ties with former Knicks coach/president Isiah Thomas, his former teammate at Indiana.
Woodson had dinner with Thomas last month in Westchester. But The Post has learned Woodson has no plans of including the unemployed Thomas as part of the coaching staff or in an advisory role.
Woodson is content with his current group. He loves Mike D’Antoni carryovers Herb Williams and Kenny Atkinson, who is Jeremy Lin’s favorite coach.
Woodson brought in and plans to keep ex-Knicks point guard Darrell Walker, his former Hawks assistant Jim Todd and advisor Bill Smith, his high school coach in Indianapolis.
Woodson ran the Knicks’ first pre-draft camp workouts yesterday to officially kick off “next season.’’
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Surprisingly, center Tyson Chandler, who won Defensive Player of the Year, was left off the NBA’s first-team All-Defense yesterday, passed over for Dwight Howard and Serge Ibaka. It was only the third time since the DPOY award has been awarded in 1983 that the reigning winner wasn’t a first-teamer.
NBA coaches vote for the all-defense teams while the media votes for DPOY. Chandler was placed on the second team — a development that even caused Lin to tweet his confusion.
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Syracuse point guard Scoop Jardine credited Carmelo Anthony for spurring him on during his senior year during which the Orange made the Elite Eight. Jardine went mano-a-mano in a point-guard battle against Hempstead’s Tru Holloway of Xavier. The Knicks select 48th overall and Jardine and Holloway are on the Knicks’ radar as they look to bulk up at point guard.
Jardine admitted for good luck he placed his belongings by Lin’s locker. Jardine met Anthony when he was a sophomore.
“He came up, he cut the ribbon for the Melo Center,’’ Jardine said of Syracuse’s practice facility. “Beginning of my [sophomore] year, I got to play with him a little bit. He took a liking to me. He came back for Midnight Madness [this season]. I got his number and I talked to him throughout whole season. He was on me the whole year to keep leading the guys. Every game, I had a text from him and that’s what helped me lead the guys and why we had a great year.’’
Asked what it would be like to be teammates with him as a Knick, Jardine smiled broadly and said, “It would be the easiest job in America. Pass to Melo and get out of the way.’’
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Holloway, meanwhile, feels he can fill a gap.
“I know in the backcourt they definitely need some help,’’ Holloway said. “You go to some teams and they have a lot of young guards and a veteran point guard. The Knicks are not like that.’’
The knock on Holloway is his size must combat the stigma of being involved in the brawl vs. Cincinnati. “You check my track record. I’m a clean-cut guy. I never had legal issues or campus issues,’’ Holloway said.