Don Chaney's assistant-coaching search now moves to Chicago, where he will interview a handful of candidates at the pre-draft camp next week.

Expect Hall of Famer Dave Cowens, Chaney's former Celtics teammate, to be one of those interviewed, though Cowens is seeking a head coaching job and has had nibbles.

Patrick Ewing, believed to be seeking employment now that Wizards coach Doug Collins has been ousted, could merit an interview, but he's a longshot because the Knicks already have a big-man coach, Herb Williams. Other interesting names seeking employment are Dennis Johnson, Sidney Lowe, Terry Stotts and K.C. Jones, who claims to be on Chaney's list.

Yesterday, the Knicks confirmed the hiring of Brendan Malone for his third Knicks stint. He will be Chaney's top assistant. Malone's son, Michael, was promoted to advance scout, leaving Chaney with one hire left.

Former Knicks assistant coach Tom Thibodeau has been contacted by several teams, including Chicago, Portland and Golden State, about joining their respective coaching staffs.

There is a strong possibility that Thibodeau will be reunited with Jeff Van Gundy if Van Gundy returns to coaching. The Cleveland Cavaliers are expected to make Van Gundy an offer within the next several days.

Van Gundy, though, is not ruling out returning to TNT as a broadcaster for at least one more season. Even if he is coaching next year, there is no guarantee that Thibodeau would be part of his staff.

Thibodeau was prepared to leave the Knicks and Van Gundy two years ago to become Maurice Cheeks' top assistant in Portland. The job would have made Thibodeau, 45, one of the league's highest-paid assistants.

The NBA Finals may be nothing more than a dream for the current Knicks, but the good old days will be remembered on Friday, when the 1973 champion Knicks will be honored at the NBA Store in midtown.

The ceremony, presented by the NBA Retired Players Association and the Volvo For Life safe driving campaign, will include a special honorary moment for Knicks Hall of Famer Dave DeBusschere, who died earlier this month.

Presentations also will be made to the widows and charitable foundations of former NBA players Malik Sealy and Bobby Phills, who died in car accidents. The event will kick off a tour of retired NBA players to promote safe driving.

Brendan Malone's tenure as an assistant coach with the Indiana Pacers ended late Thursday, when he signed a contract to rejoin the New York Knicks in a similar capacity.

It's a return to roots for Malone, who'll rejoin the franchise he left three years ago to join Isiah Thomas' staff. He will be reunited with his son Mike, an assistant coach/advance scout, and Knicks coach Don Chaney, whom he worked for in Detroit in the 1990s.

Malone saw it as an opportunity to return home.

"That's the bottom line for me," Malone said Friday. "I'm a New Yorker; this is home for me.

The Cleveland Cavaliers are expected to make Jeff Van Gundy an offer to become their next head coach sometime over the next few days, according to league source.

The Cavs appeared to be waiting for the Western Conference finals to end before making Van Gundy a formal offer.

Whether Van Gundy will accept the job is unclear. He reiterated yesterday that he enjoys his job as a broadcaster and that he and his family prefer to live in Chappaqua, N.Y. Van Gundy is not ruling out returning to TNT, with whom he is under contract for one more year. "I've really enjoyed my time at Turner," Van Gundy said yesterday over the telephone. "I still don't know what is going to happen. Right now I'd say it's a 50-50 proposition whether I'll be coaching next season."

This is what Jeff Van Gundy knew after an hour on the telephone Wednesday night with newly anointed 76ers president Billy King:

For whatever reasons, this was the wrong time, the wrong team for a return to coaching.

The Sixers had received permission from New York to speak with the Knicks' former coach earlier that day, but if there were any courting to be done, it was over before it started.

Just when it appeared free agent Larry Brown, having commandeered the coaching carousel upon resigning from the 76ers, had the sway to get off at whatever NBA pit stop he pleased, Cavalier chatter reconfirms a previous report in this space that Jeff Van Gundy will sign momentarily with Cleveland.

While Van Gundy has been toying with the Rockets and 76ers (or was it the other way around?), his representative has been negotiating with the Cavs, who had targeted him weeks ago as their No. 1 choice, just ahead of Paul Silas.

At first, it looked as if the dialogue wouldn't go beyond the preliminary stage. Gordon Gund and GM Jim Paxson were put off by suggestions that the former Knick fatalist wanted an annual salary of $7 million and veto power/control regarding personnel decisions. Compromise and reason have prevailed on both sides of the table from that point on, which is expected to yield a five-year agreement in the vicinity of $25 million.

Brendan Malone is returning to the Knicks to reunite with his son and Don Chaney.

Malone has left the Pacers and agreed to terms to become one of Chaney's assistants, The Post has learned. According to league sources, his son Mike Malone, now an associate, will also be promoted.

The Post mentioned the elder Malone as a possible Knick candidate the day after Chaney fired three assistants. Malone, a New York native, was Chaney's assistant in Detroit in the early-to-mid-1990's.

The Knicks, who have not announced the hiring, declined to comment. Chaney is expected to add one more assistant.

Jeff Van Gundy won't be coaching the Philadelphia 76ers.

Van Gundy, who already interviewed for the Cleveland Cavaliers' vacancy, spoke to Sixers general manager Billy King on Wednesday night.

"We mutually agreed it wasn't a good fit,'' Van Gundy said Thursday in an interview on Comcast SportsNet, which is owned by the same company that owns the 76ers.

The Sixers have been looking for a coach since Hall of Famer Larry Brown resigned Monday after six seasons.

Van Gundy, who abruptly resigned last season as coach of the New York Knicks and remains under contract with the club until July 31, appears to be the leading candidate for the Cavs' job. Former New Orleans coach Paul Silas also interviewed with Cleveland. Brown also is interested in the position.

Portland yesterday rejected the 76ers' request to talk with Trail Blazers coach Maurice Cheeks about their vacant coaching job. But the team received permission from the New York Knicks to speak with their former coach, Jeff Van Gundy.

Van Gundy, a TV analyst, is still under contract with the Knicks.

As Cheeks spoke with reporters in Portland yesterday, the Sixers' practice facility was buzzing with activity. Allen Iverson arrived at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine shortly after 5 p.m., flanked by his business manager and agent.