Does Phil Jackson Know What He’s Doing?
A journey through the current mental state of every single Knicks fan.
As a true (orange and) blue Knick fan, I had mixed feelings about ’90s-ruiner Phil Jackson joining the squad. Yes, he’d amassed tons of championship rings with the tandems of Jordan and Pippen or Shaq and Kobe — but we, um, didn’t have those guys. And I loved that he carried the cred of the chip-winning ’73 team — but that was four forevers ago and even Phil doesn’t have weed strong enough to revive Willis Reed.
When he arrived as Prez of Operations in 2014, we were a rebuilding project, the likes of which The Zen Master had never encountered. We were hoping merely to crawl out of the Isiah-induced hellpit that was the entire 2000s and reclaim even a shred of self-respect. Toss in a demented owner, no draft picks thanks to Bargnani (Isiah strikes again!), and the fact that Phil was pushing 70 with a family across the country. Emperor P-Jax was practically set up to fail.
But wait…
Yes, Phil Jackson knows what he’s doing!
All of a sudden, like a slow-moving, under-the-radar twister, Phil strikes. After being booed on draft night in Brooklyn, Porzingis quickly proves he’s so good that cynical New Yorkers nickname him Godzingis. Then, Phil shapes Jerian Grant into an asset that becomes Derrick Rose, nabs native New Yorker with the grit of Oak man slash legitimately fun person Joakim Noah (aka Sexy Sideshow Bob), acquires steady bettys Aaron Afflalo and Courtney Lee and even scoops street legend/proto-NYC PG Brandon Jennings for a year.
There’s potentially a crushing first-round sweep in our very near future. Which would be great.
And hey, not to get ahead of ourselves, but if this team stays healthy and really gels, you could argue there’s enough talent and depth to be a top two team in the east.
Wait, what’s that? The Cavs lost Delly and Timo? And they know they can’t beat the Warriors so they’re not even gonna try? And LeBron proved everything he had to last season?
WE COULD BEAT THE CAVS. WE COULD WIN THE EAST.
But wait…
No, Phil has no idea what he’s doing.
Being a native New Yorker (and a fan of hilarious ineptitude) I have a soft spot in my heart for the Knicks. As a Syracuse fan, the members of Cuse’s lone title team (get at me Craig Forth!) will always have a special place in my heart, none more so than Carmelo. I’m on your side, Knicks fans. Really, I am. It would be thrilling to have a contending team in the Mecca of Basketball. But Phil Jackson is detrimental to the process.
Let’s start with the basics: who the hell thought he was qualified for this job to begin with? Before being hired by the Knicks, Jackson had exactly zero seconds of executive experience in his life. Fellow HOFers Jerry West and Larry Bird had at least three years of front office experience — earning their stripes as scouts and assistants — before being given keys to a franchise. It’s not like Jackson had any real hand in building the rosters that won him all those rings. Jordan and Pippen were already in Chicago by the time he got there, ditto with Shaq and Kobe in L.A. The Zen Master even has a still sizzling un-zen-like feud with Jerry Krause, the architect of Jordan’s Bulls, partially because Krause feels Jackson gets too much credit for putting together that dynasty.
Jackson’s record in his two years at the wheel is 49–115. Given the Isiah Thomas dumpster fire he inherited, it’s tough to put too much blame on Phil for this, but he’s still chiefly responsible for the on-court product. His first move as GM was hiring Derek Fisher as head coach. A fellow neophyte to his job, Fisher was fired after less than two seasons, marred by Kardashian-level personal drama, the shoehorning of an out-of-date offense and a 40–96 record. This time around, Jackson delayed hiring a coach so he could go on vacation, eventually settling on Jeff Hornaceck, the coaching equivalent of elevator music.
Phil supporters point to his drafting of Kristaps Porzingis as evidence that Jackson knows what he’s doing, and rightfully so. The Zinger could be Dirk 2.0, an even taller sharpshooter capable of protecting rims as well as draining 3s. But NBA history is littered with potential-packed rookies who ended up having mediocre-to-bad careers. Just since the turn of the century, guys like Steve Francis, Emeka Okafor and Brandon Roy have all won Rookie of the Year, each thought of as franchise cornerstones at the time. Porzingis is much more likely to land on the Dirk end of spectrum, but Knicks fans may want to stop counting their Latvian eggs before they Latvian hatch.
Which brings us to this offseason, the best example of Phil not knowing what he’s doing. Multiple members of the organization have expressed that the franchise is in win-now mode. This has been backed up by trading for Derrick Rose and signing Joakim Noah, along with some other solid role players. That’s all well and good, but…why? This is not a contending team that should be in win-now mode. They’re miles away from contending in The LebrEastern Conference.
Even if this roster of Hospital All-Stars manages to miraculously stay healthy and return to peak form, what’s their ceiling? Losing to the Cavs in the conference finals? Who cares? Quick, who did Cleveland beat in the conference finals this year? You probably don’t remember, and that was just a couple months ago. (The Raptors.) Given that their upside is to be forgotten weeks after the season, the Knicks would’ve been wise to continue playing the long game of rebuilding the franchise.
I would love to be wrong. Melo having NBA success would be joyful. But Phil Jackson is not the man to do it. Please hire anyone else, Knicks. Anyone but Isiah Thomas.
Maybe, just maybe?
First, what’s your beef with elevator music? It’s soothing, inoffensive and hasn’t slept with Matt Barnes’ wife.
Second, grossly overpaying guys four years past their prime is What. We. Do. Part of the team’s mission statement at this point. McDyess, Stevie Franchise, T-Mac, Zach Randolph, Amare, Jalen Rose, Dikembe Freakin Mutumbo, Phil himself. The list goes on. So we can’t be too mad at Jax for trying to make us the 2011 Bulls — he’s just following company policy.
And finally, who’s to say we can’t trip and fall ass-backwards into the postseason this year? The East is as up-for-grabs as ever, expectations for the team are modest (I think a reasonable fan would be stoked with, like, 38 wins), D-Rose is still only 27 (despite his knees being 67 and 71, respectively), and Jo Noah can absorb some of the media spotlight that Melo is too chill to seize.
Making the playoffs won’t be easy — Cavs, Raps, Celts, Bulls, Buzz, Heat, Pacers, Bucks all still feel better than us — but I’ve got my sights set on the seven or eight seed. And if, by some stroke of fortune, we get there, I’ll be the first to give credit where credit is due: to our 6-foot-8, homework-assigning, soft-spoken, Ewing-slaying, pinkie-whistling, hippie dippie President of Basketball Operations. Phil. And to Mike Breen, the actual greatest Knick of all time.
