Despite being mentioned in a variety of rumors, Phil Jackson and the New York Knicks decided against making any moves at the NBA Trade Deadline on Thursday.
Well, that was anti-climatic.
After months of rumors, the NBA Trade Deadline rolled around on Thursday and…absolutely nothing happened.
Dwight Howard stayed in Houston, Al Horford remained in Atlanta, and Kevin Love stayed put in Cleveland. Simply put, the day was almost a complete and total disappointment unless you’re a big fan of Kirk Hinrich. In which case, have fun watching him play for the Hawks.
For the New York Knicks, it was just another day in what has been a bizarre few weeks.
After firing their head coach Derek Fisher, the team announced Kurt Rambis would be taking his place on an interim basis for the remainder of the season. Having lost nine of their previous ten games, team president Phil Jackson made it sound as if the Knicks would be extremely active on Thursday. Outside of Carmelo Anthony and Kristaps Porzingis, it seemed as if everyone was available. This team wanted to make a playoff push and that push would begin at the trade deadline.
Well, we were wrong.
Despite having conversations with the Atlanta Hawks about Jeff Teague and Minnesota Timberwolves about Ricky Rubio, the Knicks were unable to iron out a suitable contract. Even Ty Lawson, who is little more than a role player for the Houston Rockets, couldn’t be traded for.
Making trades during the rebuilding phase is always a risky move. Had Phil Jackson dealt away future picks, he’d be mortgaging the future to win now with a team that simply isn’t there yet. If he had traded away some role players, he might be messing with the future core of the team. Move a star like Melo? God knows what can happen. Trades may be the riskiest move a GM or president can make and with Phil’s legacy very much on the line in New York, you can’t blame him for being weary of any deals.
In reality, not making a move was probably the right move regardless of repercussions on Phil’s legacy.
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The Knicks needed a point guard desperately and with some interesting names on the market, it would have been easy for them to splurge, send away two first rounders and a nice player and call it a day. It wasn’t too long ago that something exactly like that would have happened. In this new era for New York, things are finally being done differently.
Rather than dish out a couple of draft picks for someone like Ricky Rubio, who may be a splashy name but fail to fit into the triangle offense, the Knicks are finally exercising some patience. For the first time in…ever(?) New York will own all of its draft picks after this summer and with backcourt options like Ty Lawson, Brandon Jennings, and the highly coveted Mike Conley all becoming free agents this summer, now is the perfect time to put that patience to practice.
Sure, the Knicks may stumble down the stretch with no real threat at point guard and without a draft pick this summer, that will hurt. But with plenty of cap-space for free agency, the Knicks now will get the chance to not only add Conley, but also maintain their draft picks and continuously improve the roster over time.
Related Story: 2016 NBA Trade Deadline Live Tracker
Considering they have a great young piece in Kristaps Porzingis and an established star in Carmelo Anthony, New York has a nice base already set. Adding Conley and maintaining draft picks into the future are a far greater advantage right now to Phil Jackson than breaking the bank for someone like Ty Lawson, who may or may not be able to rebound after a dreadful first half.
For the first time in a long time, the New York Knicks have a plan and seem to be sticking to it.