5 reasons the New York Knicks are doomed

3. Problems with the “Zen Master”

Knicks president Phil Jackson has been a longtime advocate for the triangle offense. This is a system that worked wonders for him during his time coaching the Bulls and the Lakers. But according to a recent report, the Knicks haven’t been running the triangle offense very often, and Jackson isn’t happy about it.

The whole point of appointing Jackson as president of the organization was to bring a culture change to a franchise that is perennially incompetent. But how is Jackson supposed to create positive change if his team refuses to follow his directions? There is a disconnect going on, either with the players or with the coaching staff — or maybe both. We’ve seen the power of a well-drilled system at work with teams like San Antonio and Golden State. New York’s inability to commit to a style of play and a way of running their offense is going to kill their chances to compete against any disciplined team in the league.

But the problems with Jackson don’t stop at the triangle offense. The Knicks President recently referred to LeBron James and his business partners as a “posse.” The unfortunate wording sparked a strong reaction from James as well as Anthony, who had some words of his own for Jackson:

“I don’t think you have to be a rocket scientist or an educated person to understand what that means to us….To some people, the word ‘posse’ might not mean anything. It might just be a word. To some other people, it could be a derogatory statement. It all depends on who you mention it to, who you’re talking about.”

Tension between your best player and the president of the organization is never a good thing.