Why The Memphis Grizzlies Shouldn’t Blow It Up

The Alternative

A few months after it was signed, Phil Jackson, the most successful professional coach of all-time who was paid handsomely to finally instill the hapless Knicks with an identity they’d been missing for two decades, dubbed the deal “almost insane.”

This was more than a bit ironic on a number of levels, not the least of which was that someone who has written books about how culture and team dynamics had been instrumental in his championship runs was now completely discounting the inherent value of spending money to keep said dynamics afloat.

Or was he? Jackson had to know that Joakim Noah the player was not worth anywhere near the $72 million he gave him over four years. There was more that Jackson hoped to get from Noah than on-court production. He thought he could buy culture for his team, and mask the deficiencies in that area that existed elsewhere on the roster. This did not go according to plan.