Phil Jackson basically gives up on Knicks, calls them a failed experiment

New York Knicks president Phil Jackson has stated that his experiment for the team “has fallen flat” thus far.

Remember when the New York Knicks were supposed to be a fringe playoff contender? That was the sentiment initially reflected by acting president Phil Jackson. The combined thirteen time NBA champion took over the reigns of basketball operations for the historic franchise along with first year head coach Derek Fisher last year. With a 10-38 start to the season though, Jackson has finally admitted that his experiment has ultimately been a flop thus far.

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The Knicks are dealing with a lack of talent overall. In addition to having little to no support in the starting five for oft-injured Carmelo Anthony, the stark deficit of bench depth is making it difficult to find a silver lining to this year. Despite all of this, against any sort of convention, the team has won five of its last seven contests.

Still, Jackson and Fisher have some issues to address. At this very moment, the team stands just a half a game up on the Philadelphia 76ers for the cellar spot in the Eastern conference.

“Like nothing I’ve seen before, so far, my experiment has fallen flat on its face,” Jackson stated.

With their playoff chances all but gone, the team dealt guards Iman Shumpert and J.R. Smith last month to the Cleveland Cavaliers. Many feel that the Knicks should tank and ride out the remainder of the season on stand-by in the hopes of landing projected number one overall pick Duke center Jahil Okafor. Currently, the team would have the third most entries into the 2015 lottery, as they trail both Philly and Minnesota, who is in even more disarray with just eight victories on the season since the departure of Kevin Love.

There is also the opportunity for the team to be active in free agency. Although it would appear that the franchise’s real target, Kevin Durant is considering New York as a possible future home, it is unlikely that he would turn down a much more talented Thunder squad, or should he walk, a playoff ready Washington. Until 2016, the point is likely moot anyway.

If the Knicks want to mesh, Jackson and company will need to provide the franchise with another solid defender (New York just traded their best one away), and a true point guard that can effectively command the triangle style offense that made Jackson so successful in his days with Los Angeles.

“You do need great players to win the championship, but having to always chase the best talent in free agency eventually becomes a mind-set of, well, the best talent wins as opposed to who plays the best team basketball — which is what San Antonio showed last season.”

Say what you want about Fisher; maybe he is not the right fit for this team. But Jackson clearly has a system he wants to implement, and there are most certainly head coaches in this league that can execute it. If they can swing a Lamar Odom or Scottie Pippen type to compliment Carmelo, and replace Jose Calderon with an upgrade at the point, this team goes from cellar dweller to playoff contender in a flash. The next step would be convincing Anthony to finally play both sides of the ball, something that despite showing flashes of brilliance, he has never truly embraced.

[H/T Sports Illustrated]

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