In the 2004 movie I, Robot, Will Smith’s Character says, “Does thinking you are the only sane man in the world make you crazy?” Never has a movie quote described a sports personality more accurately than the Knicks President, Phil Jackson.
There is no denying Jackson’s legacy: He is a revered in three of the most popular sports cities in America. He won 2 championships as a player with the New York Knicks (1969,1973), won 6 titles coaching the Chicago Bulls, plus 5 rings with the Los Angeles Lakers. Yet, all his success has been as a player and as a coach.
Hall of Fame Football coach Bill Parcells once said, “You are what your record is.” In two full years with Jackson running the team, the Knicks have a combined record of 49-115. Jackson’s first hire was Derek Fisher. He gave his former player, who had no coaching experience, a 5-year contract. Jackson wanted his protégé to run the Triangle offense. The problem was, his three best players — Carmelo Anthony, J.R. Smith and Amar’e Stoudemire — were all isolation players. The Triangle is predicated on ball movement, cutting and trusting one another. Isolation players, or “ball stoppers,” don’t thrive in that system.
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The Knicks don’t have a 1st round draft pick this year and they just hired Jeff Hornacek to be the team’s next head coach. In two and a half years, he had a record 101-112 with the Phoenix Suns. Hornacek wants to play up tempo; I like his coaching philosophy, but the Knicks have three starters who are suited to play in the half court. Center Robin Lopez, Point Guard Jose Calderon and Anthony are all slow, methodical, half court players. This coaching choice is like putting a square peg in a round hole.
If I was Jackson, I would have hired UConn’s Men’s basketball coach Kevin Ollie. He is well respected around the league and won a National Championship in 2014. The Former NBA veteran mentored LeBron James and Kevin Durant. If Ollie was on the bench, free agents would be interested in coming to NY. But not one elite player will sign with the Knicks because of the Hornacek hire. My second choice would have been former Knicks Point Guard Mark Jackson.
The Knicks have just one playoff series win since 2000. When Jackson got hired, I thought it was the right move. I was wrong, the game has passed him by. Without a draft pick and no “big time” free agents to sign, the Knicks will most likely miss the playoffs in 2017, while Jackson is making around $12 million per year. It is time for Jackson to go; it is an experiment that has gone horribly wrong. He is a 12-million-dollar mistake, and Knicks fans deserve better.
For more from Monte Perez, follow The Sports Whisperer on Twitter @Montetjwitter11, and listen to the Monte Cristo Sports Thing on WRNJ Radio.
Hero (Top) Feature Image: © Mark J. Terrill / Associated Press
