Chandler wrote:

crzymdups wrote:

Chandler wrote:I think

I also think

Exactly. We're all just speculating.

so are the kenenedy conspiracy theorists, and the UFO fans. Not sure what the point is

Just stop and ask yourself do you think Phil would let Dolan tell him what to do? Woould you, if you were in Phil's shoes, had his record of achievement, were financially secure, etc. NFW

don't believe the media on this; don't even let them influence you. you're smarter than that!

In mid-April, Phil said he would hire someone he knew and that person would be running the Triangle.

As of mid-April, Jackson was all set on hiring his guy, Kurt Rambis, telling the New York media in one of his rare press sessions, “Only people I know will probably be in the interview process.” He wanted his former Lakers assistant because he would run his beloved triangle offense. As Jackson put it, “That’s what I was brought here for: to install a system. It’s all part of the package.”

In mid-May, Phil hired someone he didn't know that well and there have been reports he doesn't have to run the Triangle.

So. It's all open to speculation what that shift was in that month. There have been reports that Dolan nixed Rambis. Melo very publicly nixed Rambis. There were even reports KP wasn't thrilled about Rambis.

Hey, I'm glad it worked out the way it did. Thibs or Vogel or maybe Blatt would've been my choices, but Hornacek seems promising. I hope for the best.

But if you don't notice a shift between what Phil himself said on the exit interview day about the coach he'd hire and who he actually hired, who has been told he doesn't have to run the Triangle...

crzymdups wrote:

Chandler wrote:

crzymdups wrote:

Chandler wrote:I think

I also think

Exactly. We're all just speculating.

so are the kenenedy conspiracy theorists, and the UFO fans. Not sure what the point is

Just stop and ask yourself do you think Phil would let Dolan tell him what to do? Woould you, if you were in Phil's shoes, had his record of achievement, were financially secure, etc. NFW

don't believe the media on this; don't even let them influence you. you're smarter than that!

In mid-April, Phil said he would hire someone he knew and that person would be running the Triangle.

As of mid-April, Jackson was all set on hiring his guy, Kurt Rambis, telling the New York media in one of his rare press sessions, “Only people I know will probably be in the interview process.” He wanted his former Lakers assistant because he would run his beloved triangle offense. As Jackson put it, “That’s what I was brought here for: to install a system. It’s all part of the package.”

In mid-May, Phil hired someone he didn't know that well and there have been reports he doesn't have to run the Triangle.

So. It's all open to speculation what that shift was in that month. There have been reports that Dolan nixed Rambis. Melo very publicly nixed Rambis. There were even reports KP wasn't thrilled about Rambis.

Hey, I'm glad it worked out the way it did. Thibs or Vogel or maybe Blatt would've been my choices, but Hornacek seems promising. I hope for the best.

But if you don't notice a shift between what Phil himself said on the exit interview day about the coach he'd hire and who he actually hired, who has been told he doesn't have to run the Triangle...

“Only people I probably know will be in the interview process,’’ Jackson said. “I will reach out to make connections to some people. I’ve been in this position in the NBA over 50 years. I’ve seen lot of situations where coaches end up coming in without simpactico with the general manager. Someone who has compatibility with what I do as a leader would have to be in sync with what we do.’’

Don't put so much weight on Phil's comments to the Media. He's notorious for messing with them and sending them false signals. The only Triangle guys were Rambis and Luke. Blatt, Vogel and JH i'm sure have some understanding of the Triangle but really they fit his statements in the past that he is open to any system that involves group play like the Triangle.

“Someone has to match the style about the way we do things,” Jackson said. “And there’s a certain style that I have that I think that works and have found to work before. I don’t know if all those people measure up to that because I don’t know them enough. But that’s an important aspect to it. We’ll find that type of person.”

“The system of basketball is what’s important. We’re talking about a system. This happens to be the system that we’re familiar with so it’s not paramount, but it’s important. … Every team is [equipped to run the triangle]. Good, sound offense incorporates all types of players. I know there was a bit about [Rajon] Rondo the other day saying the triangle is not good for him and it was, to me, laughable because all players can fit in a sound offense.”

This isn't about Dolan or Melo IMO. If Rambis was the lock the media said he was then Phil would've named him early on IMO. Rambis didn't perform well enough to make Phil's decision simple. Not to mention the exit interviews, which seem not to have been glowing about Rambis.

By Chris Herring
June 3, 2016 8:14 p.m. ET

GREENBURGH, N.Y.—After nearly two months of mystery, speculation, confusion and a little outrage, the Knicks finally unveiled their fifth head coach in the past six seasons on Friday, introducing Jeff Hornacek at the team’s practice facility in Greenburgh.

Now they’ll have to get to work on everything else.

Hornacek, the 53-year-old former All-Star NBA guard and Phoenix Suns coach, hit all the right notes and confirmed many of the things that had been speculated in recent weeks: that he will attempt to formulate his own hybrid version of the triangle offense, and that he will work to create a faster-paced system to help the notoriously slow Knicks get easier shots in transition scenarios.

It all sounded normal enough. But all of it was framed in a context that might have been unthinkable a year or two ago—namely, that Knicks president Phil Jackson plans to let go of the reins with Hornacek, ceding some of his authority to his coach in an effort to get this moribund franchise off the ground.

Unlike with Derek Fisher, who had some latitude to diversify the team’s offense but was fired during his second season when the wins didn’t follow, Jackson said Friday that he would put greater trust in Hornacek because he has run an NBA team in the past.

“[With Fisher] I looked at the model that was used in Indiana,” Jackson said. “Larry Bird hired some substantial assistants when he was coach: [Rick] Carlisle and Dick Harter as defensive and offensive coordinators. And that was the model I thought was appropriate to have with Derek coming in. This is entirely different. This is a coach who knows how to run practices and has that experience, which is reflected in the fact that he’s been in a variety of systems.”

The freedom for Hornacek to potentially choose his assistants would be especially noteworthy. Jackson suggested that Fisher, a first-time head coach, hadn’t made sufficient use of the assistants the Knicks provided to him, preferring to lean on the ones he brought with him from Oklahoma City.

By contrast, it appears that Hornacek will have more control over the coaches he brings to his staff with the Knicks, including the choice of whether interim head coach Kurt Rambis will return to being an assistant with the team.

Jackson and Hornacek both raved about a five-plus hour meeting in which they talked, and agreed, about strategy and the Knicks’ roster.

“I’m not sure if I have talked that much in my life,” Hornacek said. “So it was very easy to talk basketball, philosophy and getting to meet [general manager] Steve [Mills]. It just fit for me and I was hoping it fit for them.”

Jeff Hornacek, with Suns guard Archie Goodwin in January, went 101-112 in parts of three seasons as Phoenix’s coach.

Much of the conversation, Hornacek said, centered on how he might blend his own styles with the triangle system the Knicks have in place.

“There a lot of aspects of the triangle—the spacing, the cuts, hitting the post—that are not unique to the triangle,” he said. “You can space the court and run a lot of the different things that I did in Phoenix. So there will be aspects of the triangle.”

Several times, Hornacek said there were ways to alter the triangle simply by trying different spatial alignments.

He added that he believes “a bigger dose” of pick-and-roll action—not typically in the Jackson playbook—could also benefit the Knicks.

Hornacek said he wants the Knicks to pressure the ball more and rely less on their rim protectors in an effort to create turnovers and start fast breaks. He said the Knicks would need to be in great physical condition to play as fast as he’d like.

Since much of his system in Phoenix revolved around the Suns’ plentiful point guards, Hornacek was quizzed Friday about the Knicks’ vexing point-guard situation. He offered little insight other than to say that he will work with what he has—namely the young Jerian Grant and the old Jose Calderon—if need be.

All told, it’s clear that Jackson has more faith in his new coach than he seemingly ever had in Fisher, and he’s showing it by giving Hornacek more autonomy, or at least saying he will.

“We are doing what we have to do to move forward,” Jackson said, “and that is the important part.”