The New York Knicks have managed to outdo themselves with all the drama as of late. Phil Jackson and Jim Dolan have a mess on their hands.
When the story of the night isn’t that the team loss for the 10th time in the last 14 games, it tells you all you need to know. After starting the season 14-10, the New York Knicks have inexplicably stumbled to 22-32 and are in danger of missing the postseason for the fourth straight time.But none of the above was the story on Wednesday night.
A man that looked like Charles Oakley just went after Knicks owner James Dolan.
— Ian Begley (@IanBegley) February 9, 2017
While the Knicks were in the midst of blowing a lead to the LA Clippers, it was former Knick Charles Oakley who showed more fight than any other player had done all season. Unfortunately for him, Knicks owner Jim Dolan wasn’t having it.
Since then, there have been many conflicting reports as to what led to this altercation transpiring. But warped in this nebulous situation is the clear image of the Knicks being all-time dysfunctional.
Jim Dolan versus Charles Oakley is now serving as the under-card to the heavyweight showdown between president Phil Jackson and star-player Carmelo Anthony. What an absolute mess taking place at the World’s Most Famous Arena.
Times like these are where the intelligent minds transcend the adversity. The leader of the franchise emerges from the flames and the black smoke.
Is it Dolan? Phil? Melo?
Well, upon the Zen Master gracing NY with his presence, the agreement was that Dolan would dole out full autonomy to Jackson in addition to the five-year, $60 million contract.
So for all intents and purposes, the 11-time champion would be in charge, but this does demand a deeper analysis due to his tense relationship with Anthony at the moment.
Jackson inherited nine-time All Star Carmelo Anthony. However, he didn’t inherit an Anthony with a max-contract and a no-trade clause. This was a guy on the brink of becoming an unrestricted free agent.
It was Phil’s decision to re-sign Melo for five years. He then decided it was a good idea to give him a NTC, which ultimately put the ball in his court. So now, in a dramatic turn of events, Jackson is trying to rectify a problem he created.
And to be quite honest, his solution doesn’t exactly consist of a coherent recipe. It’s already difficult to trade aging stars in this league, especially when they are making the kind of money Melo is. Couple that with the fact that he’s had reconstructive knee-surgery and is clearly trending downward.
Jackson is at a disadvantage as it pertains to trying to unload him while getting something of value in return. Why is he publicly shaming Melo if all that does is diminishes the value of what he’s offering? Doesn’t sound very Zen-like.
Whether you like it or not, it’s Melo’s team right now.
He’s been the face of the franchise for years now and oh, by the way, in the two years prior to Jackson officially taking over, the Knicks were 91-73. They had gone to the postseason once and missed it by just one game the other time. What a time it was to be alive in New York, considering the perpetual losing this period has been sandwiched in between.
Since then, NY is 71-147 with three straight playoff DNPs and an angry fan-base. As I previously mentioned, they’re starring at watching the postseason from home once again.
You can despise Anthony for being so isolation-heavy. It drives people nuts because it’s not conducive to winning basketball these days. It’s also hard to forget about him forcing the trade from Denver that stripped the Knicks’ bare.
But it’s inarguable that Melo has done much more for the Knicks and that this is his team. Since Jackson’s credibility and decision-making are being impugned, Melo is their best shot at recruiting free agents.
Why would anyone want to go play there when you look at what the star of the team is currently enduring? It has become rather apparent Jackson doesn’t have a clue as to what he’s doing. So with the Knicks not being an attractive destination, the burden is now on Melo’s shoulders to get people to come play there. That, of course, if he sticks around.
Frankly, this is a marriage that just needs to end so everyone involved can somehow ascend back to normalcy. The depressing part about this if you’re a Knicks fan is that there’s actually a conversation about this franchise being at its worst point ever.
This is a team that is devoid of a championship since 1973 with all kinds of controversies and firings lumped in since then. But somehow, the Knicks are doing the unthinkable. But at least it won’t be long before Jackson’s back on Twitter riddling.
