I don’t know how real the rumors about Phil Jackson fielding trade calls for Kristaps Porzingis are, but it’s yet another sign in a long list that suggests Jackson’s lost his magic touch. Porzingis was his one bright spot, so trading him (even for a good return) would show a lack of vision for this sputtering franchise.
Rather than “blow up” the already blown-up mess, let me submit my own humble proposal.
Step one: fire Phil
It doesn’t detract from his coaching legacy, but Phil Jackson’s proven to be a poor manager of this team so far. Some coaching/player legends prove to be great executives — but those are the ones who manage to evolve their thinking and embrace the modern game. The legends who struggle are those who try to recreate what worked for them in a previous era, forever getting frozen in time as the league passes them by. It’s fairly obvious which camp Phil sits in at the moment…
Step two: hire a new coach
No disrespect to Jeff Hornacek, who was dealt a bad hand here, but I believe the Knicks need new leadership from top to bottom. A culture change would do the franchise well, particularly in regards to their relationship with their star Porzingis.
The coach that I’d recommend in his place isn’t a big name — but that could be a good thing. I’m talking about Utah assistant Alex Jensen. The 6’7″ Jensen played and coached under Rick Majerus in college, and since has joined the professional ranks — first with success in the D-League and now as an assistant with the Jazz. With Utah, Jensen works with the bigs. We’re not behind the scenes and in the gym, so I can’t claim to know how much he should be credited with Rudy Gobert‘s development, but it’d be a feather in his cap if he did help there.
What I do know about Jensen is that he comes across as extremely affable and humble in interviews, which is a nice contrast from Phil Jackson, aka the Holy God of Basketball. Perhaps Jensen can mend fences with Porzingis and help mentor Willy Hernangomez as well. He also comes from a strong organization in Utah, where Quin Snyder‘s a rising star of the coaching ranks.
Step three: trade Carmelo Anthony for Blake Griffin (post S&T)
Blake Griffin heads to the Knicks in this scenario.
Okay, so this is the “hard” step that I mentioned and the one that will be the most controversial. On the surface, the Clippers aren’t going to do this. Blake Griffin probably won’t agree to this, either.
But then again, there’s a chance. Griffin can be a free agent, so he controls his destiny in a sign-and-trade front. If Griffin’s sick of Chris Paul and doesn’t want to commit to 4 more years of CP3’s barking orders at him, the Knicks aren’t a bad “out.”
I know Griffin gets flak from fans these days, but I happen to like the fit next to Kristaps Porzingis. Defensively, Porzingis has the length to help protect the shorter-arm Griffin (same as DeAndre Jordan). Offensively, the two would mesh even better. Griffin’s not a simple run and dunk athlete — he’s quite skilled at ballhandling and playmaking. He can initiate the offense, and kick out to a spacer like Porzingis.
Griffin’s health is an obvious issue, but that’s part of the risk you take with a home run swing. I can understand hesitancy about signing the 28-year-old Griffin to a big contract (many Knicks fans may not want to even consider it), but I’d roll the dice myself. If Griffin is healthy, he can put up monster numbers as the lead playmaker of an offense. There’s a reason he finished in the top 3 of MVP voting after all. Presuming my doctors sign off on him, I’d give it the green light.
The Clippers will presumably try to keep Griffin (even if it means a max) but if Griffin tells them he’s leaving no matter what, perhaps the Clippers bite the bullet and accept Carmelo Anthony as a return. They won’t be able to acquire any other stars in free agency anyway.
Step four: sit pretty at #8 and draft the best available player
In my personal rankings of the top prospects, there are 8 players who appear to be a tier above the rest.
At #8, the Knicks should be able to land an impact player. Most likely, it’ll be a guard who drops: be it a PG like De’Aaron Fox, Dennis Smith, or a SG like Malik Monk. Any of the three of them would be able to fit in with the hypothetical Blake Griffin – Kristaps Porzingis tandem.
That would give the Knicks three young building blocks (Griffin being the oldest and riskiest at 28) who may be able to vault the team right back to relevance. I don’t know if it’s work, but I’d like to see them try something new.
