NBA AM: Learning Curve Ending For Phil Jackson

Learning Curve Ending For Phil Jackson

The New York Knicks (13-51), boasting a payroll of over $80 million this season, are owners of the league’s worst record and are set to miss the playoffs for the second consecutive campaign. Things are rotten in the Big Apple at the moment but even the most optimistic Knicks fan didn’t enter the season expecting a playoff run.

Sure, hiring team president Phil Jackson toward the end of last season and re-signing Carmelo Anthony to a long term deal last summer served as strong building blocks, but the team was still in need of a massive overhaul. As the 2014-15 campaign hits the final stretch, the Knicks are locked in on their plan to get better in a hurry.

There are three ways to improve in the NBA: draft, trades and signings. The Knicks are strongly positioned in two of the three areas to make some noise this offseason.

With the league’s worst record, the Knicks are headed toward a high lottery pick in June’s draft and the team has $32 million in guaranteed salaries on the books for next season, which gives the club an option to become a prime player in free agency.

Jackson recently opened up on his plans for retooling the Knicks, and working the free agent market will be his preferred avenue of choice.

“We know what the first-round pick is going to mean for us, but we also know we’re going to build our team with free agents,” Jackson said, according to Ramona Shelburne of ESPN. “A hundred and ninety players or so are going to be free agents. Not half the league, but like a third of the league is going to be free agents. So that’s where our priority stands.

“It’s not about who is going to have to have the most money anymore. That playing field has pretty much evened out, especially with the amount of money that’s coming into the league. It’s going to be whose attractive enough to get the people they want to play their style of play. The way they’re doing it. So establishing how you want to play basketball is important. And there’s only a few teams in this league that can say this is our definitive way that we want to play. We want to be one of those teams. So we have eyesight on who can play in our system and who wants to play.”

Head coach is one of the main driving forces of implementing a recognizable style and culture for a franchise. But the jury is still out on whether first-year head coach Derek Fisher can become a top flight sideline general.

However, the jury on Fisher isn’t the only item in question. Jackson himself, despite all of the championship rings as a player and coach, is still in the infancy stages of his front office career.

Up until this point, Jackson’s moves can be classified as the good and the questionable. Let’s take a look:

The Good

1. Re-signing Anthony to a long-term deal. Some questioned the money thrown at an aging superstar given the team’s predicament, but if it’s hard to get to the top with a future Hall of Famer in the fold, imagine life without him.
2. Signing guard Langston Galloway. The rookie guard has been one of the few bright spots for the Knicks this season, becoming a double-digit scorer and handling a boatload of minutes each night in the process.

The Questionable

1. Traded Tyson Chandler and Raymond Felton to the Dallas Mavericks for Jose Calderon, Shane Larkin, Wayne Ellington, Samuel Dalembert, two 2014 second-round picks (No. 34 – Cleanthony Early) (No. 51 – Thanasis Antetokounmpo). Dalembert and Ellington are no longer on the roster while Calderon’s playing-making ability has diminished in New York.
2. Traded Iman Shumpert along with J.R. Smith to the Cleveland Cavaliers for a second round draft pick, a highly protected first-round pick, Lance Thomas and Lou Amundson. The addition of Shumpert and Smith has helped to elevate the Cavaliers into the title discussion mix.

Jackson is just getting his feet wet running the show from the front office, but this summer will be a crucial one for his blueprint to bring the team out of the league’s basement. Jackson and the organization cannot afford to swing and miss with a high lottery pick in June and plenty of money to burn come free agency in July.

Sometimes trades are needed and aren’t just about the guys who change addresses

One thing about the annual trade deadline is that sometimes the true winners are guys who weren’t moved at all, but were the primary beneficiaries of a teammate being shipped.

The Utah Jazz once boasted Charlotte Hornets center Al Jefferson and Atlanta Hawks two-time All-Star forward Paul Millsap in their rotation. However, the team ultimately decided to go with a youth movement and let both guys walk in free agency back in 2013. The immediate impact of letting Jefferson and Millsap walk was the fact Derrick Favors and Enes Kanter would be thrust into larger roles and gain experience.

Both guys rollicked to career years last season even though the Jazz as a unit struggled to find an identity. This season, both guys are on their way to further improve on their individual success, but Kanter was shipped at the deadline to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Kanter, headed to restricted free agency this summer, wanted out of Utah and the center also wants to get paid in a lucrative deal. The Thunder were looking for an inside presence who could score on the low block to complete their offense. The Jazz were seemingly left high and dry by a player they invested in by allowing Jefferson and Millsap to bolt almost two years ago.

But Kanter’s departure has opened the door for Rudy Gobert, the No. 27 overall pick of the 2013 draft, who was acquired by the Jazz in a draft day trade with Denver.

Since the All-Star break, Gobert is averaging 9.7 points, 13.3 rebounds and three blocks in 33.5 minutes per night. In fact, Gobert has only posted single digits in rebounds twice since the All-Star break with two 20-rebound performances in the process.

Kanter wanted out. Gobert just needed more minutes to shine.

Kanter seems to be a good fit in Oklahoma City and the trade is benefiting the Thunder as they make a playoff push. However, Gobert has been able to blossom without Kanter in the fold needing minutes every night.

So the trade deadline isn’t always about the pieces that end up on the move. Sometimes there’s a guy waiting in the wings, ready for their spot in the limelight.