Where It All Went Wrong
There is a glaring issue when analyzing where it has gone wrong on the basketball court in New York: the defense.
If you thought that the worst defense in New York was the Jets, you are sorely mistaken. The Knicks are currently second-to-last in the Eastern Conference in points allowed per game, behind only their in-state counterparts, the 8-32 Brooklyn Nets. The dumpster fire that is the the defense at the Garden is directly correlated to the personnel that makes up the roster.
When Jackson built a roster comprised of players past their prime, he took a risk that has since fallen off a high cliff. Each player in the preseason starting lineup, barring Kristaps Porzingis, is either over-30-years-old, has suffered more than one significant injury in his career, or both.
Anthony, Rose, and Lee are 2nd through 4th on the team in minutes per game, respectively. Aging players simply can not play more than 30 minutes per night without sacrificing something on one end of the game.
The New York Knicks are 7th in the Eastern Conference in points scored per game, so the sacrifices made for the starters to play so many minutes are obvious.
In addition to the on-court struggles, New York is struggling to keep it together off the court. Last week, Derrick Rose was MIA before a home game against the New Orleans Pelicans. It was later discovered that Rose had gone back to Chicago to be with family and considered leaving the game of basketball.
It is important to consider the likely possibility that Rose was dealing with an earnest family issue, but for a player to be uncomfortable disclosing to an organization that he must take a leave of absence for family matters is a problem in and of itself.
Another story that has made its way to the media over the past couple of days has been the rift in Carmelo Anthony and Phil Jackson’s relationship. Rumors have circulated that Jackson is considering moving Melo, and a meeting between the two has been scheduled. An unhappy superstar and an uncomfortable Rose would create a recipe for disaster within the struggling franchise.
Courtney Lee has also taken his displeasure with the coaching staff to social media. After Monday’s benching he posted Instagram pictures of characters from the movie Dumb and Dumber. The pictures have since been deleted, but he is just another disgruntled player in a messy situation.
As long as the Knicks continue to lose and players continue to voice their disappointment, nothing will be solved in New York. Phil Jackson has some work to do, and he must work swiftly to fix the disaster that he has created.