Sam Hinkie
In an NBA landscape where analytics are a larger part of the landscape than ever before, anybody nicknamed the “Zen Master” is going to be outdated. Sam Hinkie is the exact opposite of Phil Jackson.
Hinkie brought “The Process” to Philiadelphia. The strategy that brought years of losing and rosters that didn’t belong in the NBA. However, over time the process has shown to somewhat work and the 76ers have a bevy of young talent. They were also a few ping-pong balls away from some absolute game-changers.
Though, owners became impatient and Hinkie was let go last year. Since then, there have been rumors of him joining many front offices. A chance at re-building the Knicks may be too appealing to turn down.
Sam Hinkie knew the main way he would be able to bring superstars to Philadelphia was to draft them. This was a main reason in the 76ers bottoming out. However, this is not be the case in New York. With an owner willing to spend, and already having a young star, the Knicks will need something different from “The Process 2.0”.