Five and a half years after being fired from his post as head coach of the Golden State Warriors, P.J. Carlesimo is once again a candidate across the NBA.

"He will definitely be a head coach in the NBA again soon," Nets president Rod Thorn said. "And I wouldn't be surprised at all if it was this coming year."

Knicks president Isiah Thomas has interviewed Carlesimo once and will probably talk to him again about becoming the team's head coach, and at least two other clubs have made inquiries, leading people who know Carlesimo to believe the ice is starting to thaw.

"Something is going to happen this year," said Pacers coach Rick Carlisle, a former assistant under Carlesimo in Portland from 1994-1997. "I've been hearing his name a lot, and a couple of different organizations have called me to ask about him. He deserves a chance, not because he's great guy, but because he's a great coach."