Blueprint NYK 2020 : How To Fix The New York Knicks, Part 1

Blueprint NYK : How To Fix The New York Knicks

Part 1

Written By Kyle Crabbe

Twitter:@KthetruestKnick

One of Sports' biggest questions over recent years is why the infamous and iconic New York City Basketball team the Knickerbockers can't win anything and are in such constant dysfunction? Is it because New York City is suffering a bad luck curse from trading Knicks Legend Patrick Ewing? Or because the Knicks have the worst sports owner in James Dolan? Or Because in 2014 New York City savagely booed Latvian Draft Pick Kristaps Porzingis unceremoniously when selected by the Knicks before even playing a minute for the Team? Or Maybe because the Modern Millennial's can't perform in such a “ tough stage” as New York in the World's Most Famous Arena in the toughest Media Market in the World?

This writer believes it could in all actually be a combination of all of those conspiracy theories. I do believe that for the passionate basketball and sports enthusiastic there's probably a need for a more concrete reasoning and a good explanation for such ineptitude and poor performances.

In this 5-Part Series on the New York Knicks, I will take my attempt at unraveling the Knicks issues and solving the Rubik Cube of what the New York Franchise needs to do in order to get back to winning Championships for the city of New York.

This Five-Part Series will cover questions such as 1) What issues have plagued the Knicks Franchise? 2) How to rebrand the Knicks League-Wide Image? 3) Which Current Knicks Players should be kept and which players should be let go? 4) Which Future Free Agents Knicks should pursue and which Draft Prospects Knicks should seek in 2020 NBA Draft? And 5) What does the Knicks Future really look like?

For those that don't prefer to read I have also released a YouTube Podcast Post on “ How to Fix the Knicks, this is a great listen and a very thorough breakdown of what we will be covering in these TruFan Knicks Blog 5-Part Series. There will also be a link after each passage in this article. You can get the link here:

YouTube Podcast : “ COPSports How To Fix The Knicks”

Now let's get into the reality of the New York Knicks franchise and what it will take it get that great basketball arena back in post-season games and in meaningful moments.

Blueprint NYK Part 1 : The Reality of the Knicks

There's no doubt that the basketball team playing at Madison Square Garden hasn't done much winning since the turn of the new century. It is a fact that the New York Knicks have the worst team record in the NBA since the 2000-2001 NBA Season posting a combined win-loss score of 590 Wins to 952 Losses, good for a less than stellar 38% winning percentage. While to be fair, there have also been a few other NBA franchises that have struggled winning just as comparable to the Knicks such as the Sacramento Kings with 853 Losses, Minnesota Timberwolves with 893 Losses, the Charlotte Franchises of the Bobcats/ Hornets with 813 Losses, and even New York's new across town rivals the Brooklyn/ New Jersey Nets have lost a grand total of 888 games since the start of the 2000's, but the Knickerbockers are the only NBA team in that time to lose over 900 games.

The Knicks have not been in the NBA finals since 1999 and have only been to the post-season 5 times in 20 seasons while only advancing past the 1^st round one time and never reaching the conference finals. That's a major reason and accurate stat to back the Media and Public Perception of the Knicks being that they stink. It is true the Knicks haven't won a NBA Championship since 1973( Atlanta Hawks last won in 1958) but again to be objective and fair there are also still 13 NBA teams that have never won a NBA Chip and of those teams we have several teams that have been around since the Knicks last Finals victory like the Denver Nuggets; who only made the Finals once in 1976, or The Los Angeles Clippers who have never been NBA Champs, or the Indiana Pacers, or the Phoenix Suns, or the great Utah Jazz, or even the Knicks close neighbor the New Jersey/ Brooklyn Nets have never achieved that grand feat of making it to the top of the league.

That leads to the narrative that the Knicks haven't been a championship team in almost 50 Years. Yes the Knicks haven't been crowned champs in exactly 47 years but they have been very relevant in the NBA and in the Finals conversation throughout the 90's. During the Patrick Ewing-Era, the NY Knicks made it to post-season play 14 straight seasons including two trips to the NBA finals. The Knicks were widely considered a top 5 team throughout an iconic era of NBA basketball that produced legendary teams such as the Michael Jordan 6X Champions Chicago Bulls, The Hakeem Olajuwon 2X Back-to-Back Houston Rockets Championship teams, The DavidRobinson-then Tim Duncan led San Antonio Spurs 1X Champions, and the Karl Malone-John Stockon Imfamous Utah Jazz. The Knicks were viewed league-wide as the best defensive team of the 90's and as one of the teams that were annually considered as a contender in competition for winning it all in that fierce era of NBA basketball.

But beyond all the stats and with all things at surface glance there's always more to the story than just the big numbers. The story the Popular Media crafted has been that the Knicks have plummeted ever since Rich-Kid and the CEO's son, James Dolan took over leadership of Madison Square Garden and the New York Knicks in 1998. Dolan has had a personal hand in many of the Knicks poor personnel hiring and the rash of untimely and inept dismissals. And for that he does deserve a considerable degree of responsibility for where the Knicks winning or lack thereof has frustrated New York fans worldwide for the better of the last 20 years.

Dolan can be viewed as a sensitive Business Man that comes from a wealthy background to a privileged head management position. Dolan is indeed a essential part of the Knicks problem but the way he's portrayed as a poor, inadvisable and horrible owner in the press is very misguided. Dolan does seem to have his share of hasty and possibly imprudent decisions but what he does have and that has been neglected to be shown is Dolan's great talent for business.

Dolan has succeeded at different positions within his business career as well as immensely on the business side of the New York Knicks. What has been underrepresented in the covering of the Knicks or more specifically in the critical pieces regarding Dolan have been his wealth of successes in terms of Stadium development and event / show sales.

Since Dolan took leadership of the Knicks in 1998, the Knicks valued at $400 Million in 2002 but as recently as of February 2020 have been valued at $4.6 Billion netting MSG board members an overjoyed well above and over typical return on investment.

In terms of ticket sales, even thought the Knicks only made it to the playoffs in 5 seasons since 2000, the Knicks have been Top 5 in attendance 10 times, averaging over 19,000 patrons and never placed under the Top 10 in attendance since Dolan took leadership. So despite all turmoil with the team on the basketball court, something has to be said for the continued impressive ticket sales. That is another credit to Dolan that isn't being presented in objective criticisms. Even recently Dolan and his Madison Square Garden group sold their ownership of the Los Angels Stadium, “ The Forum”. The former home the Los Angeles Lakers, to the Billionaire Steve Ballmer the new owner of the Los Angeles Clippers for $400 Million. It was reported that Dolan brought the Forum in 2012 for $23.5 Million then invested $100 Million in renovations and reopened the Forum for concerts and live events in 2014. The Forum then became one of the top grossing arenas in the United States with over $477 Million in sales, $5.3 Million in Tickets, while hosting over 495 shows since 2014. Just another example of Dolan's successful Business stewardship and talent.

However to be an objective journalist we must see if Dolan is if fact a poor Owner by the definition of his responsibility. If we look at the Knicks as if fact a business entity and Dolan as the CEO and leadership of that Business, then the picture of Dolan dramatically changes. Dolan on the business side is one of the NBA's premier Owner's but on the basketball side he is one of the worst. Here's a look at what the best definition we could find for an NBA Owner's Responsibility:

“ They provide the operating capital necessary to run the team, pay for the arena and arena staff, pay the paychecks of the players and team staff, and represent the team at owner's meetings, and lastly identifying and hiring the Front Office Staff of the team with a General Manager to handle the overall basketball operations of the Franchise.”

Dolan throughout the years has been more than willing to pay for talent and maybe sometime overpay to satisfy team prospects and personnel. Since 2000, Dolan and the Knicks have consistently been one of the highest payroll teams in the NBA. The stats support that Dolan has always been willing to pay for staff and players. The Knicks since 2000 were either 1^st or 2^nd in payroll 10 times and 13 times were in the Top 5 in payroll. The reality of James Dolan being one of the worst owner's in Sports is not supported by a full-view of the evidence. But to that same point, there's a lot of information from this Franchise on losing, the chaos at times and not winning with any consistency that points to the conclusion that Dolan also isn't one of the best owner in the NBA.

Since Dolan isn't the biggest hindrance to the Knicks winning, what are the issues that have actually realistically plagued the New York basketball Franchise? When I take a deep dive into the Knicks since 2000 and see what has held them back when I compare them to the 4 teams that won 16 out of the 21 Finals in that time, I determined the Knicks have been bedeviled thee most by these three aliments: 1) Personnel Turnover, 2) Popular / Media Perception, 3) Unrealistic Expectations.

YouTube Podcast : “ COP SportsHow To Fix The Knicks” Link

1. Personnel Turnover

The Knicks biggest issue has been their trouble in retaining talent, at all levels. The Knicks since 2000 have had 5 different executives leading the operations, have went through 13 different head coaches, and haven't had one played drafted by the Knicks make it past his rookie contract with the team( Rookie Contract is typically 4 years).

A big part of any organization or team's success is continuity and chemistry. Those elements can only be developed and cannot be simply bought or instantaneously manufactured. The Knicks have consistently over this time frame burned the 5-Year plan around year 2-3 which has led to literally 5 different attempts at rebuilding the Knicks coming out of the 1990's.

I noticed that this problem didn't come just because the Knicks were impatient or incapable of finding talent that could handle those positions but there was more to the story, again. The Knicks more often than not got rid of an executive, or a coach, or a player before they could establish themselves or develop fruitfully because there was a enormous undercurrent of pressure and expectations in New York from the New York market. Now it's well know of the tough New York Media Market, but what isn't show is how that rough New York pressure has destroyed potential great Knicks team after potential great Knicks team. There's many examples of this but I'll point to just one.

ExampleA: In the 2013-14 NBA Season, the Knicks were fresh off their first division title since 1994. Carmelo Anthony was their Superstar fresh off his best season, finishing 3^rd in MVP votes and leading the NBA in scoring. While losing a few veterans in the off-season such as starting Guard Jason Kidd, and reserves Marcus Camby and Rasheed Wallace the Knicks started the 2013-14 Season pretty slow, hampered by the reigning 6^th Man of The Year Jr Smith slowed from injury, and the reigning Defensive Player of the Year Tyson Chandler went down in the fourth game of the season with a leg injury, misfortune put the Knicks season in chaos. 

At that point the city of New York and Popular New York Media News Outlets decidedly did not take into consideration this team had championship expectations that had been derailed by unlucky circumstances. The media proceeded to be overtly critical of Carmelo Anthony, Coach Mike Woodson, and the erratic play of Jr Smith. This resulted in a storm of judgmental scathing articles claiming Carmelo just wasn't a MVP type player, and Mike Woodson needed to be replaced because he can't control Jr Smith. 

Which led to a huge public wave of disapproval spearheaded by self-proclaimed Knicks Fan and Star Sports Media Personality Stephen A. Smith, that concluded with a Knicks Fan Protest outside of Madison Square Garden before the Knicks March 19^th game against the Indiana Pacers. What makes this specific story a perfect example of the layered reasoning of how and why the Knicks have had so much high Personnel Turnover, is what actually concludes directly from that date in Knicks history. On that day, March 19^th , the Knicks had a Fan protest outside “for Better!!” and because “ it's been so hard being a Knicks Fan”. Meanwhile, the actually Knicks team would won their 7^th game in a row, finally finding the chemistry they had from the season before that produced a 54-win season. 

This wave of dissect cause Owner James Dolan to seek out better leadership for his Knicks, and he landed on NBA Legend and 13X NBA Champion Phil Jackson. Phil Jackson, whom had never been a Basketball Executive was tasked with replacing what the Knicks had and completely rebuilding a product Knicks fans would truly respect. I have a great belief the Fans protest basically signed the pink slip for Mike Woodson release before Phil was even appointed. Which was unfair and unjust because Mike Woodson in brief time as Head Coach showed nothing but success when his players was healthy. 

But Phil Jackson was brought in specifically to replace not just Woodson but everything the Knicks fans at that protest despised. Phil Jackson's first day as the head of the Knicks basketball operation was March 18^th, the day before that said protest, and his first game at Madison Square Garden as the new President, came with seeing that very Fan protest pregame outside of the Garden. Phil Jackson's last day as Knicks President came on June 28^th, 2017. In little over 3 years, Phil did what the people of New York wanted, immediately letting go of Mike Woodson, then Executive Glen Grunwald, and completely reshaping the roster with the only player to remind after 3 short years; Carmelo Anthony.

This is just a short clip of the same story that has repeated itself with the Knicks every 3 years for the past 20 years. The Knicks constant Personnel turnover has been back-breaking to any strong foundation New York could have built. I believe it's been a strong combination of Dolan listening too much to the critics, the City believing too much of the negativity, and the players falling under the immense scrutiny to perform. That leads to the next two problems which we will treat as one, which are the Popular Media Perception of the Knicks and the unrealistic Expectations that seem to consistently plague the Knicks.

YouTube Podcast : “ COP SportsHow To Fix The Knicks” Link

2. Media Narrative / Popular Perception & 3. Unrealistic Expectations

In the “ Toughest” Media market in the United States, the New York Knicks have had to deal with the abundance of reporters and journalist taking their own swipes at the Knicks with liberty when circumstances create a more marketable crude chaotic story of dysfunction. The biggest issue I have seen with this consistency of coverage is overtly pessimistic narratives that have followed all New York Knicks star players regardless of their successes playing while with the Knicks. Here's a quick collage of the most damning narratives of the Knicks most recent Star Players :

ExampleB.

-Stephon Marbury

Marbury was a born and bred New Yorker, who at one time was considered one of very primer Guards in the NBA. His time with the Knicks despite good numbers and being a elite player during that time was labeled negativity and worded as a failure in popular New York press at that time.

Here's a couple Articles from then :

-“ Is Stephon Marbury Ever Leaving The Knicks”

- “Garbage In The Garden”

Marbury was brought over to New York from the Phoenix Suns. The Suns were able to acquire Steve Nash the next season and went on an incredible run. Nash even won back-to-back Most Valuable Player awards. If we compare Nash's individual numbers to that of Stephon Marbury for those years even including Nash's 2005 and 2006 MVP statistical campaigns and it looks like this:

Steve Nash(2004-2007) : 17.6 Points Per Game, 11.2 Assists Per Game, .8 Steals Per Game, on 51% Shooting From the Field.

Stephon Marbury(2004-2007) : 18.1 Points Per Game, 6.6 Assists Per Game, 1.2 Steals Per Game, on 44% Shooting From the Field.

The caveat in this specific case being Nash had the benefit of playing under one Head Coach( Legendary Offensive Genius Mike D'Antoni) and at least 2 other All-Star Players while Marbury in those same 4 seasons played under 4 different Head Coaches and played with no other All-Star players. So now when we look at the numbers with greater context, the scrutiny displaced on Marbury during his tenure we can conclude from media and fans alike was far from just or objective?

-Carmelo Anthony

Carmelo Anthony also born in the city of New York, like Marbury with roots in the NYC borough of Brooklyn. Anthony can be considered the best offensive talent of his generation and arguably the best offensive player the Knicks have had in their entire history. Melo like Marbury and Patrick Ewing before him took constant negative and pessimistic journalism while trying to play the Knicks up to another NBA Championship. Anthony typically articles looked like this:

-“ Carmelo Anthony Way Overrated”

• “ Carmelo Anthony Showing Signs Of Stephon Marbury 2.0”
• “ 15 People Who Don't Like Carmelo Anthony”
• “ Knicks Blogger Carmelo Anthony Report Card”

Melo has had to deal with that of being compared to that his close friend and Draft Classmate LeBron James. The narrative he has been placed up against is he won't bring the kind of success to New York that a LeBron James would.

Clearly due to this prevailing narrative, we can see Carmelo wasn't supported or beloved in New York the way we see other Franchises' Legendary Stars such as Russell Westbrook with OKC, Allen Iverson in Philadelphia or Reggie Miller in Indiana.

Melo was overwhelming criticized for not rising up or making his teammates elevate with the right support and win in New York. The unrealistic expectations laid on Carmelo and his teams with the Knicks have literally caused the perception that now circles around Anthony career that he underachieved. These two last articles define how Melo was shown “ Love” from New York during his dedicated and loyal tenure.

• “ Carmelo Anthony Booed in last game in New York”
• “ Carmelo Anthony, a disappointment or victim of unrealistic expectations”

My research has determined that the unrealistic expectations like “ This Knicks winning it this year” that New York fans levy every season is a major cause for the Knicks untimely and inept underdevelopment of their Franchise. Owner James Dolan being a astute business man is more adept to listen to his customers ( Patrons of MSG) versus any one from the basketball operations. 

When the whole of New York City calls for the removal of Isaiah Thomas or Phil Jackson, or Fire this coach, or get rid of that player, Dolan obliges. The pressure from the narrative( unrealistic expectation) causes the Knicks to make an abrupt move to have to reset the rebuild which has occurred several times over the past 20 years now.

There's even evidence of these unreasonable narratives still affecting the Knicks Franchise to this day. Here's 3 Major Story-lines that are currently fictitious and Absurd:

1) Trading For Andrea Bargnani Was Stupid

There's the popular perception that the Knicks trade for Andrea Bargnani in the summer of 2013 was one of the worst moves in NBA history. The logic behind the trade in sending aging big man Marcus Camby, Sharpshooter Steve Novak, and draft picks for the former Number One Overall Draft pick made sense. The Knicks had just lost to the Indiana Pacers in the Conference Semi-Finals the year before and with the Big3 in Miami looking as strong as ever the Knicks needed another offensive weapon besides Carmelo and Jr Smith. 

Unfortunately Bargnani was unable to stay healthy to make enough of a impact for the Knicks in the 2013-14 NBA season. Bargnani as a basketball player was a excellent primer shooter, who can space the floor and provide weak-side rim protection. 

The reason why the premise that this trade didn't work or was a complete bust is misleading, lets looks and the real numbers.

During that said 2013-14 season, with Bargnani playing the Knicks 3^rd best 5-Man Lineup Combination included Andrea with that group posting a +10.8 while together on the court for 125 minutes consisting of Bargnani at the Center, Carmelo at the Power Forward, Jr Smith at the Small Forward, Iman Shumpert at the Shooting Guard, and Rey Felton at the Point Guard. 

We can even see that for the Knicks 4-Man Lineups that same year, Bargnani is part of the very best Knicks 4-Man lineup combination. That combination was good for a +12.4 over 218 minutes played together with a group consisting of Carmelo Anthony, JR Smith, Iman Shumpert, and Andrea Bargnani.

Contrary to popular notion, this was a shrewd move for the Knicks roster at the time. Health played a major part in not only this trade finding success but that 2013-14 New York Knicks team from possibly winning at least another Atlantic Division crown and a trip to the Conference Finals. 

This is the evidence that this Popular NY Knicks pun for ineptitude is not a good one. This was at it's face a shrewd basketball move, but not a great decision given Bargnani mounting health concerns, but the chances of a player's health being a problem with another situation, training staff, and team could bear 50/50 results.

2) Jerome James is the worst Free Agent Signing of All-Time

This hot take is another statement that when taken at first glance holds a incredible about of weight. But it seems when we actually take the full weight of the reality, the picture takes a different view.

Jerome James was a Free Agent acquisition by the Isaiah Thomas led Knicks prior to the start of the 2005-2006 NBA season. Even Isaiah Thomas in hindsight has said the decision to sign James was a mistake. There's even a recent article that showcases this common perception of the Jerome James free agency.

“ August 2^nd2005, Knicks sign Center Jerome James”

To my research, this is again another excellent example of the pessimistic outlook that has tormented the Knicks in recent years. For a better understanding and just a more objective overview, let's take a look at a few players to compare to Jerome James.

We can look at Jerome James Wikipedia page for more general information, but basically James was a second round pick of the Seattle Supersonics and was touted as a young big man with excellent shot blocking ability and great potential out of college. It appears that James was also viewed as a late bloomer, this can be shown by an article written( “ Jerome James and the million-dollar question”) in his last season with the Sonics before coming to the Knicks, where even Sonics Superstar Shooting Guard Ray Allen says about James, “ You show glimpses of being great, and then all of a sudden you come out and look like you've never worked on your game before or you have no energy. People, they can see that. You have to stop blaming everybody else and step up and take responsibility. You are 7-feet tall. When you come out and do the things you are capable of, people are going to celebrate you, forever”. This comment gives a basketball viewer the impression of a basketball player that had late bloomer written all over him. Very similar to the career potential projections of players like former Pistons Great Ben Wallace and current Portland Trailblazer big man Hassan Whiteside.

When Knicks General Manager at the time Isaiah Thomas acquired and signed Jerome James, he was looking at James potential to be a back-up center and someone that can develop to a serviceable starting Center. Thomas was looking for his potential Kelvin Cato( of that time) or a player that could fill a role similar to what we see today with Lakers Center JaVale McGee. To say it was utterly a bad move and a insensible decision is very misleading and malicious. Let's give some more perspective.

In 2007, in the middle of James' contract, his salary that season was at $5.4 Million. That year the Knicks entire team payroll was at $117 Million, making James cap hit less than 5 percent for the Knicks. Which can also be said as the Knicks had James being paid like a good back-up.

In that same 2007, for perspective and a comparable player at the time, the New Jersey Nets paid Big Man Jason Collins $5.8 Million Dollars that same season for the production of : 2.1 Points Per Game, 0.5 Blocks Per Game, 4.0 Rebounds per game in 80 games played. There are no articles shaming the Nets for paying Collins that salary in 2007.

For further perspective, right after that very season, Center DeSagana Diop, signed a 6-Year, $32 Million Dollar deal with the Dallas Mavericks in the summer of 2008 just after the 2007-2008 NBA Campaign. Diop over the course of that deal would post averages of 2 Points Per Game, less than 4 rebounds per game and about a block a game. Diop was a very similar player and similar profile to that of Jerome James.

The James signing is not nearly as troubling or as poor a decision it has made out to be. We can all look at results and say that that player is exactly who he was always going to be but for many that have participated in this sport we know far too well a change in coach, culture, or teammate can make a world of difference for any particular player.

What Isaiah saw many others did too. James was ranked as a top 50 NBA Free Agent that year. James post-season was a showcase that opened Thomas eyes and the league to Jerome James. Thomas is noted in the league for having a eye for talent like his drafting of Tracy McGrady. In the 2005 post-season, James averaged 12.5 Points Per Game, 6.8 Rebounds Per Game, and 1.8 Blocks per game, 27 Minutes per game in the Western Conference Playoffs against the Sacramento Kings and eventual 2005 NBA Champions San Antonio Spurs. James did indeed look formidable against the legendary Tim Duncan and Spurs Championship front line. 

If we even look further at just James numbers during those playoffs, those numbers would compare to at that time a player of the caliber of Miami Big Man Brian Grant. Grant, a former 1994 Lottery Pick, was a player who averaged in his prime 12.4 Points Per Game, 7.7 Rebounds Per Game, 1.0 Blocks per game and was a well sought after commodity. This is evidence by the 7-Year for $86 Million Dollar deal Grant signed with the Miami Heat and Pat Riley in 2000 to be their final Championship piece. Unfortunately that same 2005 year while being paid $13.2 Million, Grant that season posted averages of 3.8 Point Per Game, 3.7 Rebounds Per Game, and 0.3 Blocks in 69 Games.

James represents a player that many teams have missed on and failed to fully develop. In recent years we have seen that same caliber player be overpaid in the NBA like in 2016 when we saw the signing of 3 Big Men for starters salaries but without the production to match:

-Bismack Biyombo, 4-Years for $72 Million

Career Averages: 5.1 PPG, 6.2 REB, 1.3 BLK

Per Year Price: $18 Million

-Ian Mahinmi, 4-Years for $64 Million

Career Averages: 5.2 PPG, 4.4 REB, 0.7 BLK

Per Year Price: $16 Million

-Timofey Mozgov, 4-Years for $65 Million

Career Averages: 6.8 PPG, 4.9 REB, 0.8 BLK

Per Year Price: $16.2 Million

These players haven't been able to produce output comparable to the salaries but that is more of a reality of the NBA than an indictment on these three ballers. 

Jerome James might just be another “ Jim Mcilvaine” of his time. Mcilvaine suffered the New Jersey Nets after signing a 7-Year $35 Million Dollar deal in Seattle over Supersonics Star Forward Shawn Kemp. Mcilvaine would play 5 years for the Nets and never quite live up to his big deal either. 

All these examples just adds more of a objective view to the logic behind Thomas and signing Jerome James. The very contentious narrative of this being the worst free-agent signing in NBA history is very harmful to the New York Knicks overall image and reputation and a direct example of harmful journalism in sports. Now let's proceed to our last major porous story-line.

3) Phil Jackson was a Failure as an Executive

My last Major incriminating Knicks Quotable is from the going narrative that the one-time great Championship Coach Phil Jackson failed in his tenure as President of basketball Operations with the Knicks. Jackson was the Knicks lead basketball executive in the years of 2014 to 2017.

During his leadership the Knicks did amass a disappointing team record of 80 wins to an abysmal 166 losses. There is no shortage of the healthy amount of articles that can be found and was written on the struggles of Phil Jackson as Knicks Executive. Such as :

-“ How Phil Jackson Failed As a Executive”

• “ 6 Terrible Decisions That Doomed Knicks Phil Jackson”
• “ A Horrifying Timeline Of Phil Jackson with the Knicks”
• “ 10 Worst Moves Phil Jackson Made As Knicks President”
• “ Looking Back At Phil Jackson's Biggest Blunders with the Knicks”

These articles paint a grave picture of the view that many hold to how Phil Jackson's tenure actually played out it New York. And as we have shown throughout our research on the very Knicks here is another pristine example of how Media Hyperbole has damaged Knicks public perception. 

Let's look at some context to Jackson's time in Knicks leadership. Was Phil Jackson that bad?

If we break down the main criticisms of Phil Jackson's run as Knicks President they break down to :

1)“...Phil Jackson never did the legwork of a true gm. Phil never did all the scouting and recruiting that it took to be successful at his job.”

2) “...The Triangle Offense that Phil tried to force on the Knicks was outdated and was case and point that Phil didn't modernize with the new NBA enough to be successful.”

3) “...Phil just picked all the wrong people. From the coaches he selected, to bad trades he made, to the horrible draft picks. Phil should of coached because he that where he was good, he was bad at picking talent as an executive.”

Now let's see if those assessments are accurate or reflect a great deal of reality.

-Phil Jackson never did the legwork of a true gm.

Couple things that are not mentioned when they bring this account to the forefront. Phil Jackson was 69 years old and turning 70 when he accepted the job to become the Knicks President of Basketball Operations. Jackson was brought in to oversee the Knicks basketball operations, set a Overall Strategy in place, and have all final say on all Knicks Franchise Basketball Team decisions. 

Jackson was appointed a General Manager to take care of the day-to-day responsibilities of the Knicks. The person that was Phil's general manager was Steve Mills. Mills is whom flew to France many times in 2017 to scout future Knicks First round pick Frank Ntilikina.

Phil did go on scouting trips, just not frequently which is very common practice for a basketball executive that is in the position Phil Jackson was performing. Phil was even spotted at Ohio State games in 2016-17 to watch future NBA All-Star Guard D'Angelo Russell. Phil it appears was unfairly criticized without context. Let me explain. 

When we think of coaching greats that also were basketball executive greats the two names that come from recent memory is Miami Heat Legend Pat Riley and San Antonio Spurs Hall-Of-Famer Gregg Popovich. But both Popovich and Riley lead as Presidents over their respective teams the same way Phil did without the same backlash.

While Gregg Popovich is coaching he cannot do all the running around of scouting and meeting with college coaches for recruiting new talent for San Antonio. But Popovich is the President of Basketball Operations for the Spurs. 

Popovich has his General Manager, RC Buford do the handling of majority of the Management responsibilities for San Antonio but signs off on all decisions.

This same dynamic holds true in Miami. Pat Riley was coaching while he was also the President of the Heat and had his General Manager do the same thing for him. That General Manager is still there to this day and his name is Andy Elisbury. Elisbury has been in that position with Pat Riley go back to when Riley came to Miami in 1995-96. Besides both being legendary NBA coaches and multiple-time champions with numerous teams, Phil Jackson and Pat Riley share another trait. They are born in the same year and share the same age. Like Phil did in New York, Pat Riley has never been at all the scouting events or at all the college game, he has had Andy Elisburg to assist him.

We can continue a bit with this very perspective of leadership familiarity. Phil in his last championship runs with the Lakers witnessed arguably the greatest basketball executives ever in the NBA logo himself, Jerry West. Jerry West is famous as a Basketball Executive for signing a 24-Year Old Shaquille O'Neal away from the Orlando Magic and drafting Future SuperStar Kobe Bryant as a 17-Year Old kid. West built that Lakers Dynasty and also built the Lakers dynasty in the 1980's lead by Point Guard Ervin “Magic”Johnson. West would also have later success in Memphis, winning the NBA Executives of the Year Award for the second time in 2004( also in 1995).

In Phil's time as the coach of Lakers he witnessed West run his leadership the same way as he attempted years later in New York. In Jerry West's time with the Kobe-Shaq Lakers, West held the position of Vice President of Basketball, but had a General Manager run the day-to-day operations named Mitch Kupchak.

When we look at the full view of what Phil Jackson's job actually was and what he was responsibly for doing the reality gives a different description of whether Jackson just never did the work.

-The Triangle Offense that Phil tried to force on the Knicks was outdated.

“ Phil's Failure of the Triangle Offense”

Phil Jackson's main responsibility when he took leadership of the Knicks was to create a plan or implement a strategy that could sustain success for the long-term in New York. The system that Phil owes his entire iconic success to is the system of the “ Triangle Offense”. To be critical of Phil for using the Triangle Offense as his foundation to build the Knicks if like criticizing Bill Belichick for focusing majority of his resources in building his football team to the Defense when defense and that system is what he became great off of.

For the skeptics that believe the Triangle Offense is no longer functionally in the NBA, it's notable that former Phil Jackson player and now coach Steve Kerr admittedly runs the Triangle Offense with the most potent offense of this era with the Championship Golden State Warriors( “Warriors Have A Triangle Problem” article ). Here's a few video's showing that the Triangle Offense isn't dead and wasn't directly the problem in New York:

“ The Triangle Offense is Alive And Well”

“ Don't Blame The Triangle Offense”

“ Triangle Offense With Lakers And Bulls Explained”

“ Why Chris Paul Would Work In Triangle Offense”

-Phil just picked all the wrong people. From the coaches he selected, to bad trades he made, to the horrible draft picks.

The biggest knocks against Phil Jackson in his time with the Knicks come down to his personnel decisions. The popular notion is Phil made a ton of rookie mistakes and his unwillingness to be humble about it cost him the opportunity to correct them and took a hit to his legendary image and genius reputation. If we look now from a full-view of all the decisions Phil made, how bad were they?

Let's start with who he picked to be the head coach of his teams.

-Derek Fisher

Derek Fisher was the Knicks Head Coach for One-and a Half Seasons before being dismissed by Phil Jackson in February of 2016. Fisher compiled a record of 40 wins to 96 losses in his time leading the Knicks basketball team. Here is a article to give more background to Fisher's tenure :

- “ Knicks Fire Derek Fisher”

When I look at a few things Fisher has accomplished I wouldn't say he was a horrible choice because he still exudes the qualities warmly associated with the Head Basketball Coach position. Fisher is still considered a natural born leader who just took the WNBA LA Sparks to the conference Finals in his first season as their head coach. In his brief time in New York, Fisher did help Kristaps Porzingis to earn All-Rookie team honors and runner up to Rookie of the year. Fisher improved the Knicks win total by 6 games in just Fisher's second season by the time he was fired with 28 games left in the season. Was Fisher that bad a choice? 

I leave this question with a article explaining Fisher in 2014 didn't only have the Knicks showing interest, as he was a candiate for the Lakers Head Coach job too.

“ Pros And Cons For Derek Fisher as PotentialLakers Head Coach”

Fisher wasn't successful in his stint as Head Coach with the Knicks but to say hiring Fisher was a horrible mistake just isn't accurate.

-Jeff Hornacek

Jeff Hornacek was Phil Jackson's second hire as Head Coach. Hornacek was hired amid huge media speculation that Phil would simply hand the coaching job over to his long-time colleague and trusted cohort Kurt Rambis( “ Phil Jackson Pushing For The Knicks To Hire Rambis As Head Coach” article). Hornacek was hired prior to the 2016-17 Season by Phil Jackson, had one season under Phil then one second under the Steve Mills-Scott Perry Leadership. Hornacek was fired by Steve Mills at the conclusion of the 2017-18 NBA Season after posting a record of 29 wins to 53 losses.

Hornacek in his two seasons as head coach in New York compiled a disappointing team record of 60 wins to 104 losses. At face value, we could look at Hornacek's record and say he was a poor hire and a bad coach. But with a bit of context the perspective of Hornacek might differ a bit.

In Jeff Hornacek's First Season with the Knicks, and under Phil Jackson's leadership the team started the 2016-2017 with a record of 16 wins to 13 losses placing them as a Top 4 Eastern Conference team. This followed with a rash of injuries to 3 of the teams 5 Starters.

Prior to joining the Knicks Hornacek has shown great ability as a Coach and basketball mind. In his first year as a Head Coach in 2013 in Phoenix he finish 2^nd to San Antonio great Coach Gregg Popovich in the Coach of the Year Award. Hornacek is also just one of three players in NBA history to have won both the player of the month and coach of the month with the same franchise. So with those attributes in mind, was Jeff the wrong choice in New York?

The next knock on Phil was his drafting. Jackson has been ridiculed before picking Kristaps Porzingis and has been since leaving the Knicks Franchise for selecting Guard Frank Ntilikina in 2017. In a article that is a bit more objective to Phil's tenure touching more on the positive aspect of the players Phil has drafted.

“ Putting Phil Jackson's Train Wreck Narrative to Bed”

Jackson's oversaw three New York Knicks drafts with these results:

-2017

1^st Round : Frank Ntilikina, Point Guard

2^nd Round : Damyean Dotson, Shooting Guard

-2015

1^st Round : Kristaps Porzingis, Power Forward

2014:

2^nd Round : Cleanthony Early, Small Forward

2^nd Round : Thanasis Antetokounmpo, Small Forward / Power Forward

After looking at Jackson's draft picks it is still very early in these players respective careers to say how well they will perform in the long run. However, we can see from Jackson's only two first round selections of Kristaps Porzingis and Frank Ntilikina as good choices. 

Porzingis has become one of the brightest young stars in the NBA coming second place in the 2015 Rookie of The Year Race and becoming an NBA All-Star already in his young NBA career. 

Frank Ntilikina has already become one the NBA best primer defenders and with an excellent tournament performance helped his National Team France win bronze in the 2019 FIBA Games. 

Even Phil Jackson's first draft selection of Cleanthony Early showed promise in his basketball career before succumbing to a tragic shooting that has slowed his basketball career. That story can be view here in this YouTube Doucumentary-Video: “ What Happen To Cleanthony Early”.

Now lastly these are the Top 5 Phil Jackson basketball roster moves that have been weighted up for greatest scrutiny. Let's take a deeper look:

5) “ Trading Jr Smith and Iman Shumpert for Nothing”

This was one of Phil first big moves with the Knicks. This was Phil cleaning up the roster to restructure the team the following off-season. Here's a article describing the trade : “ Knicks Trade Jr Smith Iman Shumpert in Housecleaning Deal”.

Reality: This was viewed at the time as a very shrewd move by the Jackson's led Knicks Front Office. Jr Smith and Iman Shumpert both had the potential to become Free Agents the following year and the Knicks had young and promising Tim Hardaway Jr, whom Coach Derek Fisher wanted to find more minutes for.

This was no different than the moves Donnie Walsh made years before to clean up this Knicks Team Salary situation. Walsh made similar deals to move at the time from the Knicks; Zach Randolph and Jamal Crawford. This can be viewed from this 2011 Blog Post of the “ Donnie Walsh Timeline” while rebuilding the Knicks.

This move also netted the Knicks diamond in the rough role player Lance Thomas and a 2^nd round pick Phil later used in a sign-and-trade to acquired Big Man Kyle O'Quinn in 2015. Jackson was even praised for the deal, getting a A- grade in this Sports Illustrated Article from 2015, “Grading the Cav's, OKC, and Knicks 3-Team Trade”.

4) “ Trading Tyson Chandler for Nothing”

This trade was Phil's first big moves after taking over as president of basketball operations with the Knicks. Chandler at the time of the Trade was still considered one of the best defensive Big Men in the league although he was coming off a couple injury riddled seasons in New York. Phil was trying to cut salary while being able to get the Knicks draft picks for the 2015 draft which they didn't have any at the time. The Knicks in this move was able to replace Raymond Felton as starting Point Guard for Jose Calderon and add two draft picks in the 2014 NBA Draft.

Reality: This move despite being heavily criticized after the fact wasn't a bad deal at all. The main player in this deal being Tyson Chandler was due to become a Free Agent the next year, was being paid like an All-Star( over 14 Million Salary), was over 30, became very injury prone and as a Defensive Center whose was becoming less valuable trending in the modern day NBA. Chandler only played the remainder of that season with the Mavericks then left in free agency that summer to sign with the Phoenix Suns.

Of the two picks the Knicks received, one pick was Cleanthony Early who potential was limited by a life tragedy, and the second in 2014 was Thanasis Antetokounmpo who is the older brother to 2019 MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo. Thanasis just signed with the 2019-2020 League Best Milwaukee Bucks, where he played 20 games for them this season with 2 starting after dominating the Greek Basketball League as a 2X League Champion and 2X League MVP. The main player in return, Jose Calderon also did play and Start for the Knicks for 2 seasons giving 114 games manning the Point Guard position for the Knicks.

Here's a article from that time that gives Phil and the Knicks a Trade Grade of B- and also explains how the trade can end up being better if the Knicks can get a good player with one of the two draft picks netted in the deal.

- “ Grade the Trade : Knicks Send Chandler back to Mavericks”

3) “ Acquiring Point Guard Derrick Rose”

Phil Jackson and the New York Knicks made huge headlines when they traded for former MVP Point Guard Derrick Rose from the Chicago Bulls. This trade was made to bring in more talent at the Point Guard spot and add a veteran star to pair with Carmelo Anthony and Kristaps Porzingis. 

The Knicks Traded Point Guards Jose Calderon and Jerian Grant with Center Robin Lopez for Derrick Rose, his teammate Shooting Guard Justin Holiday and for a 2017 2^nd Round Pick ( which Jackson used to select Shooting Guard Damyean Dotson).

This Trade has been cited innumerable places as one of Phil Jackson mistakes and blunders during his time. However, as we look more closely to the trade from several years later, this narrative also doesn't hold up very well. First off, of the three players the Knicks traded to Chicago, Jose Calderon never played for the Bulls and for the 2016-17 Season Jerian Grant and Robin Lopez combined to average 16.3 Points ( Lopez 10.4 and Grant 5.9 ppg respectively) whereas Rose alone averaged 18.0 points per game in New York.

Then if we look at Derrick Rose for that season, we see Rose was an excellent player and a solid acquisition.

The two main reasons that are given as criticism for Jackson's acquisition of Point Guard Derrick Rose was whether Rose's game fit with Jackson's “ Triangle Offense” and over Rose extensive health concerns. Well Rose in 2016-17 played in more than 60 games in back-to-back seasons for the first time since in 5 seasons due to injury. Rose has also played good basketball averaging over 18 Points, 5 Assists, 48% Shooting and over 50 games each of the last two seasons( Age 30 and Age 31 respectively) with the Detroit Pistons and Minnesota Timberwolves.

Rose in that one season with the Knicks was the third leading scorer and helped the Knicks get off to a potential post-season bound record of 16-13. Rose even performed relatively equal to 8x All-Star Chris Paul that season.

-D Rose: 2016-17 : 64 Games Played, 18.0 Ppg, 47% FG Shooting, 87% FT Shooting, 4.4 Ast, 2.3 Tov, 32.5 Mins. 1^st Year w/ Team, Salary: $21.3 Million

-C Paul: 2016-17 : 61 Games Played, 18.1 Ppg, 47% FG Shooting, 89% FT Shooting, 9.2 Ast, 2.4 Tov, 31.5 Mins. 6th Year w/ Team, Salary: $22.8 Million

Then when we factor in this was Derrick Rose, a ball dominate Point Guard's first season in the “Triangle Offense”. Even in the offense that Rose admittedly had trouble adjusting too, Rose posted his best offensive numbers since his last All-Star Appearance that season with the Knicks.

The narrative that the Derrick Rose trade to the Knicks was a failure, we must consider the context. When we look over the numbers this trade worked out well for the Knicks. Four years later and the only player still on either teams roster from this deal, is Damyean Dotson of the Knicks.

2) “ Giving Carmelo Anthony A No-Trade Clause”

This is a poor narrative because it only exists in hindsight. When we see how Carmelo Anthony's Knicks career concluded in 2017, it's easy to proclaim Anthony wasn't good enough a player to have that clause or by giving Anthony that trading chip held the Knicks franchise from trading Carmelo for a better return. This narrative can easily be debunked as we just look at this claim from a historical aspect.

Here's a article from the that time to give a better explanation of how the Carmelo resigning was viewed league-wide:

- “ Carmelo Anthony Re-Signs New York Knicks Contract”

As I took a deeper look at the Carmelo Anthony no-trade clause, I can give three reasons why not only was this a good thing for Jackson and Anthony to agree on but the Knicks didn't have a choice to whether or not to give Carmelo the No-Trade Clause.

1) Carmelo Anthony had other suitors. Anthony was also being courted heavily by better teams in Chicago and Houston, while being heavily recruited by two of his mentors and their respective teams in Iconic Power Forward Dirk Nowitzki in Dallas and Legendary Shooting Guard Kobe Bryant in Los Angeles.

2) Carmelo Anthony at the time was one of the few players in the league that was even eligible for the No-Trade Clause. The only other players in the league that had the No-Trade Clause were:

-Kevin Garnett(From Minnesota Deal)

-Dirk Nowitzki( From Dallas)

-Dwayne Wade( From Miami)

-LeBron James( From Cleveland)

-Kobe Bryant( From LA Lakers)

Carmelo Anthony was fresh off a record setting NBA season. Anthony was entering that off-season after setting the Madison Square Garden scoring record( Jan 24, 2014) of 62 points. Carmelo had also became the 50^th Player to score over 19,000 Points in the NBA and was the 5^th youngest person to ever achieve that basketball accomplishment. Melo also secured a Eastern Conference Player of the month that January 2014 and set a new record in that year's All-Star game for 3-Pointers Made in with Eight. Carmelo had earned the right to a No-Trade Clause from New York at that point in his hall-of-fame career.

3) And lastly, Carmelo Anthony had every intention of retiring as a Knick. He took the No-Trade Clause as to secure he future as a Knick-for-Life. He wanted to set his legacy in New York like his mentor Kobe did in Los Angeles.

Unfortunately this narrative held a lot of clout as it allowed Knicks fans to accept the possibility of not rebuilding with Melo and the reality of trading Carmelo Anthony out of New York.

1) “ Signing Free Agent Joakim Noah”

This is by-and-far the easiest and most malicious narrative that came from the Phil Jackson era in New York. The pointing to the signing of former Defensive Player of the Year Joakim Noah as a horrible mistake is very dangerous because the argument has no evidence, but no actual evidence truthfully exist.

My point is Joakim Noah in reality only was given one season to perform out his Four-Year Contract he agreed to. I believe Noah hasn't been fairly judged as just a bust in his time as a New York Knick, due to the circumstances or better said the overall context.

Joakim played 46 games in 2016-17 with the Knicks before he season ended with injuries and a suspension from testing positive for using a banned substance to help recover from his injury faster. In Noah's second season under new management, Noah was removed from the team and sent home after playing only 7 games after a heated altercation with Coach Hornacek over playing time.

What I'm not arguing is that Noah was clearly an excellent free agent pickup by Phil Jackson. Jackson's reasoning for adding Noah was numerous. Noah was a perfect Big Man with his basketball IQ and passing abilities for the Triangle offense, he was a former teammate with success playing with Derrick Rose, Noah would become the defensive anchor for a Knicks team full of offensive talent. Noah was brought in as one of the last pieces to a team that was expected to compete in the post-season. When the Knicks became a team looking to rebuild after that season, Noah no longer matched the Knicks future basketball needs.

The context here is we can't say for sure how well Noah would of played there if Phil stayed and Noah was given a chance to play for the Knicks. I can say for sure Noah wasn't a absolute horrible signing because in the two years since he left New York, he had a very productive season with Memphis in 2018-19 and as of March 2020 Noah signed with the Los Angeles Clippers whom are the 2^nd Place team in the NBA's Western Conference currently.

In 2018-19 after being let go by the Knicks, with the Grizzlies Noah averaged 7.1 ppg, 5.7 Reb, 2.1 ast, 51% FG Shooting, 71% FT Shooting in 42 games and at age 33. When adjusted for starters minutes( Per 36) Noah season in Memphis looks incredible last year at 15.5 Ppg, 12.4 Reb, 4.6 Ast, 1.6 Blk. Noah had a higher Win Shares Per 48 than in his 2013 All-Star season with Memphis. 

In this article, Joakim Noah reflects on his time in New York and gives more insight to the behind the scenes :  " Joakim Noah Reflects On Dark Time with Knicks".

I believe this is a big reason why the NBA Championship Contending Los Angeles Clippers went out and signed Noah now at age 34. If the Clippers 4 years later still feel Noah can add to a team that is trying to win then I have good reason to believe the move by Phil Jackson was at worst a solid decision and a sensible risk.

These 5 narratives have had their damage on the reputation of the New York Knicks and the image of the great Phil Jackson. But when we do some more objective analysis of his leadership the overall view adjusts quite a bit.

Jackson gets a lot of criticism and vitriol but he isn't nearly as applauded for the great things he did while running the Knicks Franchise. The biggest success given to Jackson during his tenure was the drafting of potential SuperStar Forward Kristaps Porzingis. 

But what isn't spoken up enough is the fact that in every year during Phil's reign the Knicks had a representative on the annul NBA All-Rookie Team. Langston Galloway in 2015, Kristaps Porzingis in 2016, and Willy Hernangomez in 2017. 

Phil was able to discover talents like Langston Galloway and while with having no draft picks in 2016 being able to find and sign Center Willy Hernangomez.

Jackson did a commendable job of getting the Knicks back their future assets, all future draft picks and getting control of the Knicks salary cap troubles. From 2001 to 2014, the Knicks Team Salary remained in the Top 10 of payroll every year except 2011. Since Phil's departure the Knicks have enjoyed the for the first time in Knicks history three straight years not in the Top 10 in NBA Team Payroll.

TruFan Overall Take

The Knicks have had a very tough run since the start of the 21^st century. The reputation and image of the once proud New York Knickerbockers' Franchise has fallen dramatically in recent times. But the reality of the Knicks is not nearly as bleak as common perception presents us.

The Knicks are like many other sports franchises that are truly just one leader, one star player and a solid Five-Year Plan away from consistent basketball success. What the Knicks have lacked over these tough years is “ Identity”.

All great Sports Franchises need a philosophy as a foundation to build strongly upon. Once the Knicks can create that “Overall Franchise Philosophy” everyone can follow that will allow for the franchise to develop a string of successful seasons. When the Knicks can accomplish that, then they will be back on the path to greatness.

This was just Part One, of a Five-Part Series in which I give the full BluePrint to Rebuilding the New York Knicks Franchise. With part one, we addressed the where the state of the Franchise, the real around the Knicks owner and also gave a dose of reality for the basketball side. In Part Two, we will address the Knicks “ Identity” and how the Knicks can go about building their team “Identity”.

YouTube Podcast : “ COP SportsHow To Fix The Knicks”

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