Phil Jackson Is Gloating Over How The NBA Playoffs Are Going Right Now

Saturday was not kind to the Golden State Warriors and the Atlanta Hawks but that sure seemed to make Phil Jackson happy.

Jackson, who is the executive of the most depressing franchise in all of basketball in the New York Knicks, is a noted skeptic of the analytics movement in the NBA which emphasizes spacing and the efficiency of the three-point shot over, say, the Triangle Offense that has long been Jackson’s signature coaching style and philosophy. Back in February, in an interview with the New York Times, Jackson stated that he wasn’t sure who would “win out” in basketball coaching circles — analytics or the Triangle.

“I think it’s still debatable about how basketball is going to be played, what’s going to win out,” he said, leaving no doubt of his disdain for the point-guard-dominated concept of “screen-and-roll, break down, pass, and two or three players standing in spots, not participating in the offense.”

Now, the regular season sure seemed to vindicate one side of Jackson’s debate. Teams that embraced the three point shot and spacing like, say, the Golden State Warriors and the Atlanta Hawks, ended up in first place of their respective conferences while the Knicks secured the second-worst record in the NBA. However, now that the Hawks and the Warriors find themselves playing from behind in the playoffs, Jackson is, oddly, gloating as if this vindicates his views over how basketball should be played.

Of course, people were quick to point out that Jackson may be the last person who should be throwing stones right now considering the sorry state of his own team.

Well played, Twitter people. Well played.