The New York Knicks made one of the best deals of the season Monday. If not the best.
After a three-team trade that’s left the Knicks in tank mode, suddenly Phil Jackson‘s vision has become crystal clear. It’s as if the large velvet curtain has been removed to reveal an old white haired Zen-like Oz. What the Knicks have done is under the radar genius. It’s a tribute to antiquated winning, and a move that will get them back to winning games faster than expected.
Jackson’s tweet post trade is encouraging. It’s also in line with the Knicks’ season. They’ve been more adept at what to say, rather than how to play. However, to fully comprehend what the Knicks are doing, you must read between the lines.
More from Hoops Habit
- The 5 most dominant NBA players who never won a championship
- 7 Players the Miami Heat might replace Herro with by the trade deadline
- Meet Cooper Flagg: The best American prospect since LeBron James
- Are the Miami Heat laying the groundwork for their next super team?
- Sophomore Jump: 5 second-year NBA players bound to breakout
Jackson’s main criticism has been whether his coaching experience lends credibility in leading the Knicks franchise. We should’ve been paying closer attention to his resume. Specifically the championships won, and the personnel used.
Not only did moving J.R. Smith and Iman Shumpert help the Knicks get rid of two corpses, it produced the cap flexibility needed to make a splash in this summer’s free agency.
But who’s going to be out there? Who wants to play in New York? Better yet, who wants to play with Carmelo Anthony?
To be straightforward … who cares?
Out of 13 players on the 2009-10 Los Angeles Lakers’ championship roster, only three are still active (Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol, Shannon Brown). Only four years later, two are still playing significant minutes. Cap flexibility for the Knicks isn’t about star players. If Jackson’s championship teams are any indication, the Knicks will allow Anthony to pull most of the weight.
They’ll seek role players with enough IQ to back him up and perform in the system Jackson will instruct Fisher to run.
In the Lakers’ last championship season, only six of the 13 suiting up had more than six years of experience in the league. It was a championship team built on players who dedicated themselves to learning and performing a system to perfection.
That’s what makes this a beautiful trade for the Knicks. It’s out with the old, in order to look forward to the new, while using older methods. Homage paid to the old school, by the architect of old school. Jackson’s unrelenting in his passion for doing things his way, and he’s creating the opportunity to do just that.
Jackson’s the best at finding worth in the most expendable players. This trade made make it apparent that he’s intent on getting back into familiar territory.
Either way, the Knicks are starting to transition from an inexplicable disaster to a consolidated mess. Carmelo Anthony sees the bigger picture, and perhaps he saw the vision all along. Maybe it was more of a motivating factor than the payday the he received from the Knicks.
In a video from Bleacher Report, Anthony debunked rumors of him shutting it down for the season, while asking Knicks fans to remain patient.
“I know there’s a lot of fans out there that’s kind of upset or kind of down on the team, kind of down on the players right now, kind of down on the situation,” Anthony said. “But I will say that it greater later, just be patient with the team, with the organization, with the journey, with the plan, with what we’re trying to create, what we’re trying to accomplish. Greatness don’t happen overnight, and that’s something that we’re trying to build here.”
When the grumblings ensue over the Knicks missing out on the big name free-agents in summer (most of which they won’t pursue) … with a lottery draft pick and a slew of solid role players, they’ll quietly move back into the winning column.
Melo will be Melo and with rookie Cleanthony Early expected to receive more burn after exiling Shumpert and Smith, he’ll pair nicely with Tim Hardaway Jr. That’s a combination capable of more than just athletic highlights. It’s possibly a plate of talent Fisher’s capable of coaching.
Will it be good enough to win New York’s first championship since 1973? Probably not. Even the mega teams spend at least one season figuring it out. That’s not to say the Knicks will go from league’s worst to best in two short seasons. They’ll be competitive, to say the least. More than five wins in January competitive.