Q+a [jeff Van Gundy]

The 40-year-old former Knicks coach took a break from his job as a TNT analyst to chat about the NBA and himself.

SI : Does evidence of Michael Jordan 's fallibility bring at least the tiniest of smiles to your face?

Van Gundy: Only if it had happened a decade or so earlier. Unfortunately, Michael was in his prime when he was playing against some of our strongest Knicks teams in their prime. And his prime was primer than ours.

SI : Would you recommend that scholars do as you did and transfer from Yale to Menlo College in California ?

Van Gundy: My mother has still not forgiven me. She'll never understand going from Yale to Menlo so I could get more playing time [on the hoops team].

SI : How important should fashion be to an NBA coach?

Van Gundy: I was one of the few coaches who got calls from top designers making sure that I did not wear their stuff.

SI : What's the toughest challenge that NBA players face each day?

Van Gundy: To keep the team first. That is absolutely the hardest thing because all of us have selfish personalities by nature. To try to keep the team first is incredibly difficult.

SI : Will you coach again in the NBA ?