New York Knicks: Reshaping the future by learning from the past

Let the coach…be a coach

Too many cooks in a small kitchen usually means the food will get burnt. In the case of the New York Knicks, it is the fans who keep getting third degree burns from the MSG kitchen. Under Phil Jackson, no coach will ever get the chance to run the team on their own terms.

However, when Pat Riley and even Rick Pitino coached the Knicks, they were given the ability to actually be the coach. The importance of a strong-willed coach who has the respect of the players cannot be overstated. Professional athletes generally have strong personalities and that hardly change. If they don’t respect the coach, there is little hope for success.

Take, for example, the personalities on the Knicks in the 1990s.  Charles Oakley, Anthony Mason and John Starks were all hardcore, battle-tested winners who took their roles very seriously.

Without someone like Pat Riley, that mix of hot-blooded competitors would not have worked.

Until Phil Jackson softens his stance on interfering with Jeff Hornacek, this version of the Knicks will never work. Hornacek may be an awful coach or he may be the next Steve Kerr. Either way, he deserves the chance to fail on his own terms.

Next: 2017 NBA Mock Draft: Post-Lottery edition

The modern NBA game is a different animal than it was in the 1990s. Yet, what it takes to form a winning team will never change. Drafting with purpose, developing role players and empowering the coach aren’t always easy steps, but they are necessary. Consequently, the Knicks may have to relive the past in order to save the future.