PHILADELPHIA -- 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.

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, is one of the candidates for the Cavs' job. Former New Orleans coach Paul Silas also interviewed with Cleveland.

Van Gundy is working as a TV analyst for TNT.

"I would say it's 50-50,'' as to whether he'll be coaching next season, Van Gundy said in Dallas prior to Game 6 of the Mavericks-Spurs series.

The Sixers already have been denied permission to speak to Portland coach Maurice Cheeks, a former 76ers assistant for four seasons under Brown and member of Philadelphia's 1983 championship team.

Cheeks has been the Trail Blazers' head coach for the last two years, accumulating a 99-65 record while overseeing a troubled team that had a spate of on- and off-court problems.

Cheeks, who still has a home in Philadelphia, has one year left on his contract, along with a team option.

Silas could become a candidate for the Sixers job. Former NBA coaches Mike Dunleavy and Mike Fratello are also possibilities. University of Memphis coach John Calipari is a long shot. Calipari, an assistant under Brown for one season, has a contract through the 2006-07 season.

King has said the Sixers probably won't hire someone without prior head coaching experience.