I think the media makes it tough to play in New York. There are so many papers and TV channels covering the Knicks and the expectations for the Knicks are so high.

[Spike Lee ] went to a game six playoff game at Indiana which was a hostile environment believing we could bring it back to New York for a game seven. That's just the kind of person he is. Also his commitment to the team and our friendship.

You look at the assistant coaches under [Pat Riley] that played and they have become prosperous within this game. It triples all the way down from the assistant players to the coaches. Patrick Ewing went into coaching as well as myself.

Me and Spike Lee are good friends. I got a lot of respect for Spike just because of who he is, what he stands for, and the support for that organization. Even when it was bad he was there.

We hated to see Coach Riley go. Coach Riley is a very smart individual and he knows his coaching style. He also knows how long to stay with it and move on. He is a very demanding individual. When you coach at that level like that it tends to whirl the players.

There were butterflies, otherwise, you're not really ready to play. The locker room, I remember, was quiet and we were very focused on playing that game.

That's a dream of mine, to be able to coach at the NBA level.