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Hop on the merry go round everyone. Time to jump into the spin zone!!
I’m here for Jeff Hornacek.
Has he done a good job thus far? Of course not. I don’t think anyone believes that or would even pretend to. The offense has looked wildly disjointed at times. He’s gone extended stretches without Kristaps or Melo on the court far too often. Rose is shooting too much and creating literally nothing for KP. Melo has fallen back into iso ball too often, even if he’s shooting a respectable 46.7% from the field. Guys don’t always hustle back when we get out and run. And the defense absolutely STINKS.
But it’s still very early. Six games is too early to judge any coach. Let alone one coaching a roster with as much turnover as this team. There are 10 new players, 7 new regular rotation players, 2 rookies coming from Europe, and 3 new starters. Expecting this team to gel immediately is preposterous, even if he hasn’t done the best job. There are certainly signs of improvement. He’s been adamant about getting more shots for Kristaps, which has already, very obviously, worked well. He’s played KP at the 5 and Melo at the 4 more often. He’s mixed Lee in with the bench, which at the very least gives that unit a competent veteran. And he’s making this team run, which will pay off in the long run.
I’m not happy with how the season has gone. But I’m also not furious. Losses to Cleveland, Houston, and Utah–all significantly better teams than the Knicks–aren’t that bad. And wins over two quality opponents in Memphis and Chicago were both impressive.
Jeff Hornacek has been… in a word… meh.
But today? Today was a big step in the right direction. Not even big. It was YUUUUGE.
Phil is mad that we’re not running the Triangle enough? Okay Phil, you know that incompetent assistant you made me keep on staff because of his willingness to be your patsy and run the triangle? He’s the defense guy now. Your triangle guy is no longer a part of offensive game planning. Boom.
Love it, Jeff. LOVE. IT. What an absolutely savage power play by the Horn Dog.
Oh you want more triangle, Phil? Really? Well now your Triangle patsy is stuck running the defense for this disjointed, poorly equipped roster you left me.
Jeff Hornacek runs this team, not Phil Jackson. Jeff Hornacek, who has a functioning basketball brain and a non-Jordan-or-Kobe track record and a well established knowledge of how the NBA works in 2016. He is the coach. And with this move he made that crystal clear.
Will this fix any issues in the short term? Of course not. Kurt Rambis is even worse of a defensive mind than he is an offensive mind, as indicated by his team’s basement-dwelling defensive output as head coach in Minnesota and for stretches with the Knicks. I mean the guy has already implemented a “no switching on pick-and-roles” game plan. Seriously, that already happened. Knowing Rambis they’ll only get worse, if that’s even possible.
But as a long-term power play, this is a good thing. It’s Jeff Hornacek’s team, not Phil Jackson’s. And I’d rather go down playing competent, modern basketball under the Horn Dog than watch another Phil Jackson patsy run that stupid, outdated system into the ground.
P.S. Did that work? Do you feel better now? I totally feel better! Haha, totally! We’re fine. Everything is fine. Go New York Go New York Go!
I hate being a Knicks fan.
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