In case you’ve been living under a rock, the New York Knicks are a complete and utter disaster this season. At 4-18, they’re only one game ahead of the Philadelphia 76ers for the worst record in the league. And, as we all know, Philly isn’t even trying to win these days. ESPN has already dropped the Knicks from two national television appearances and more will probably be flexed out as the season wears on. This wasn’t supposed to be the case as Derek Fisher was brought in by new team president Phil Jackson to implement the legendary Triangle offense. Clearly it hasn’t worked, and everyone is making fun of them now. Including Dennis Rodman, who won three titles with the Bulls running the Triangle under Jackson.
Today, The Worm weighed in on the dumpster fire at MSG, including the offense the team is supposed to be running:
“They’re not running the triangle. Derek Fisher’s not really coaching. I know Phil is trying to throw his input in the background, but who expected this from Phil? They expected him, we’re going to give you $15 million a year for the next six years and this team is — wow — they might not even make the playoffs.”
Phil has gone on record saying the Triangle is a difficult concept that will take time to grasp — a claim Rodman basically scoffed at:
“I learned that in probably 15 minutes when I was in Chicago,” Rodman said. “It’s not that difficult. It’s a triangle.”
“Everybody has an opportunity to touch the ball and shoot it. It seems like it goes back to Carmelo Anthony and then everything stops. What are you going to do?”
To be fair, Rodman had two Hall of Famers alongside him who also happened to be two of the sharpest players in NBA history, none of which Jackson has going for him in the Big Apple:
“If I know Phil [Jackson, Knicks team president], he just feels like [crap] right now,” Rodman told reporters at a promotional event in Manhattan. “I think he just feels like, ‘Wow, I thought I came here to do a great job and revitalize the city of New York.’ He didn’t expect this.
“He didn’t expect this. I saw him a couple of times on TV when I was in L.A., and I’m like, I know what you feel like, Phil. You came to be the savior and all of a sudden it’s like, ugh. Then you went and got Derek Fisher. Really, is he coaching? Is Derek Fisher coaching? I don’t get it. I don’t know what’s up with that team, man. You’ve got Carmelo and after that who else do you got?”
Oh, and what about Carmelo?
“How are you going to play with a superstar like Carmelo Anthony when he wants to shoot the ball all the time and everybody else has to play their role?” Rodman said. “How are you going to do that? Phil Jackson did that with Michael Jordan at the beginning and guess what happened. He put a team around Michael Jordan and everybody fit right in.
“Everyone knew who the boss was — that was him, Michael Jordan. Everybody knew who Kobe [Bryant] was. Kobe and Shaq [Shaquille O’Neal], they played their roles. Who is the man here in New York besides Carmelo? Nobody wants to play together with Carmelo, it seems like.”
Everyone knows the Knicks couldn’t put anyone around Carmelo because they signed him to a ridiculous contract, leaving no room for any free agent worth a damn. The good news, however, is that Amar’e Stoudemire and Andrea Bargnani’s enormous contracts are up at the end of the season, and the Knicks actually have their first round pick in the 2015 draft, so they will have some room to play with next summer. In the meantime, might as well keep the tank job rolling.
Also, the Knicks shouldn’t feel too terrible about Rodman’s comments — he slammed Steve Kerr and his coaching job with the Warriors, and they’re 18-2. He also hangs out with evil dictators.
[ESPN]
