Before Isiah Thomas turned to Lenny Wilkens as the new Knick coach, he made an offer to another legend with New York roots: Willis Reed.

But Reed, the MVP of the 1970 and 1973 NBA Finals and a former Knick coach, rejected Thomas' overtures to coach the team on an interim basis through the end of the season, The Post has learned.

Thomas was not made available to the media last night. But when a Post reporter approached Thomas as he was leaving the building and asked, "Did you ask Willis Reed to coach?" a Knick public-relations official, Joe Favorito, yelled to Thomas, "Don't answer! Don't answer!" before upbraiding the reporter.