Knicks Faithful Needs a Bite of Phil Jackson’s Zen

“We have a vision, we have a plan, we’re going to work on this plan and try and bring a basketball championship back to New York.” – Phil Jackson on the future of the New York Knicks

On March 18th, 2014, Phil Jackson was officially announced as team president of the New York Knicks. During an interview with Walt Frazier that followed his introductory press conference, these were the words of The Zen Master.

Rome was not built in a day. In fact, it its still being built today, which means it has been north of over a million days and counting. Though Knicks fans have endured an extended stretch of cringe-worthy basketball, it goes without saying that even the Zen Master’s reign will be heavily contested if a winning product isn’t pieced together soon.

The great Roman Emperor, Julius Caesar himself, was conspired against by his own people, which eventually led to his downfall. His peers felt he had too much power and didn’t necessarily agree with his decision making.

If it seems like I’m drawing parallels between New York Knicks fans & media, and the barbaric and savage ways of the people of the Roman Empire in the year 44 B.C., it’s because that was exactly my intention.

When Jackson was asked what he felt was the biggest challenge in trying to turn the team around, he didn’t hesitate by saying, “Obviously players. The players that you put on the floor have to have, you know, a certain sense about them.”

With that in mind, the player overhaul began the following season. The most significant moves included dealing Raymond Felton and Tyson Chandler to the Dallas Mavericks, and continued midway through the year as Iman Shumpert and JR Smith were dealt to the Cleveland Cavaliers. Clearly, none of these players possessed, “That sense about them,” which Jackson alluded to.

And of course there was the hiring (and later, firing) of veteran player, but rookie coach, Derek Fisher.

As a result, the Knicks had their worst season in franchise history finishing with a dismal 17-65 record. At this point, you could say that the Knicks faithful began rounding up their pilums (javelin) and were sharpening their gladius (Hispanic sword). The great Julius Caesar himself once said, “It is easier to find men who will volunteer to die, than to find those who are willing to endure great pain with patience.”

Some may say that Phil Jackson’s first year as Team President of the New York Knicks was a complete disaster, having failed the Knicks as a whole. Others claim that it went according to plan.

The Knicks ended up with the 4th overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft. That pick turned out to be the Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month for the first three months of the 2015-16 season in “Latvian Larry,” Kristaps Porzingis.

To say that Porzingis was an unpopular pick would be putting it lightly. Fast forward two-thirds of the 2015-16 season, and he is a viable contender for Rookie of the Year honors. Come five-to-10 years from now, selecting Porzingis will be known as Phil Jackson’s marquee stamp on the Knicks franchise.

Jackson, though, remains humble and refrains from commending himself for Porzingis’ talent and work ethic, as he stated in an interview with Marc Berman of The New York Post.

"“It’s not me. This is the young man that’s done it. You sit in those spots [in the draft] and analyze what you can do and have control of.” He continued, “We made a choice, a logical choice, and not having seen him but once in person, just in a shooting exhibition, I felt comfortable making the choice. I’m just happy the personality, drive and work ethic goes along with that talent level.”"

Another draft pick was acquired on draft day at the expense of Tim Hardaway Jr.—a player who’s averaged double-digits for the Knicks in consecutive seasons. The Knicks roster had a desperate need at the point guard position, so dealing Hardaway to the Hawks for Notre Dame standout Jerian Grant seemed to make sense.

Of course there were other key additions, as well. Derrick Williams, Arron Afflalo, and Robin Lopez have been the most significant augmentations to the roster.

Another slight culture change detail that hasn’t been talked about much, was the color scheme on the hardwood floor at Madison Square Garden. The key was changed from orange to blue.

The last time the paint was blue was in the 90s—a decade during which the franchise was rather successful. Whether or not this nostalgic facelift came directly from Jackson still isn’t 100 percent clear, but it shows that no stone will remain unturned.

Prior to the 2015-16 season, reputable sports media outlets such as ESPN, Bleacher Report, and CBS Sports had the New York Knicks winning between 25 and 32 games. On average, that would still be good for a 10-game win increase. The Knicks faithful at best was hoping to contend for a playoff position.

In reality, though, when Sasha Vujacic was named the starting two-guard on opening night against the Milwaukee Bucks, it should have became very clear right then and there that playoff basketball in 2016 was never going to happen.

The Knicks did surpass the prior years win total by recording their 18th win on January 6th. After beating the Utah Jazz on January 20th, the Knicks found themselves at .500 with a record of 22-22, and with that the “playoffs or bust” mentality was born for the majority of Knicks fans.

Expectations for the team seemed to go from hoping the playoffs were in play, to now fans wondering just how high in seed the Knicks could climb. It was clear to all Knicks observers that they were just a legit point guard removed from serious playoff contention.

Prior to the February 18th trade deadline, names such as Jeff Teague, Ricky Rubio, Mike Conley and Ty Lawson were all churning in the New York Knicks rumor mill. Instead, Phil Jackson gave New York Knicks fans Jimmer Fredette.

Fredette played a total of five minutes over two games before his 10-day contract expired. New York sent him back to the Knicks’ D-League affiliate, the Westchester Knicks.

Phil Jackson had no interest in changing course, and can you really blame him? The New York Knicks had no tradable assets to even attempt acquiring any of the point guards mentioned.

The Knicks appeared to be in extensive talks with potential trade partners, but in the end, no deal could be reached that Jackson felt comfortable with.

And of course there were the trade rumors surrounding Carmelo Anthony. One deal had Antony inevitably landing in Cleveland, while other reports claimed that Boston was in play. Anthony, though, is one of the few players in the league with a no-trade clause, meaning unless he signed-off on a trade, he wasn’t going any where.

Anthony echoed exactly that notion during an interview with Sirius XM radio (h/t Ian Begley of ESPN New York).

"“There’s always some trade s— going [on]”. He then emphasized, “I’m not going anywhere”. Anthony then continued by taking subliminal shots at the New York media market by saying, “When you’re in New York, you’re always up for grabs, I’ll tell you that.” He continued, “It’s always ‘who’s next’…but I don’t pay attention to those rumors.” He then drove his point home by saying, “I want to win a championship. At this point in my career, that’s the only thing I really care about…I’m not entertaining no trade talk right now.”"

After meeting with reporters during All-Star Weekend, Anthony reiterated his decision to re-sign with the New York Knicks and continued trust in Phil Jacksons plans.

"“[Winning] one [championship] in New York is better than multiple somewhere else, so that was the reason I wanted to come to New York. That’s the reason why I’m in New York, so it just bothers me when I started hearing all these trade rumors and trade talks.”"

Clearly, Anthony is 100 percent committed to the New York Knicks organization. There is no one whom it pains more to lose night in and night out as it does Carmelo Anthony at this point in his career.

If Knicks fans were half as patient and committed, there definitely wouldn’t be ‘boos’ raining down at Madison Square Garden, or the echoing of cheering for the opposing team during home games.

The Knicks struck out with several high-profile names this past off-season. Greg Monroe chose Milwaukee, Wesley Matthews signed with Dallas, and LaMarcus Aldridge left Portland to join the San Antonio Spurs. It goes without saying that players are paying attention to more than just the number of commas on their checks.

Clearly, winning comes first for most, but seeing what Carmelo Anthony had to endure thus far from the media and fans included, can’t rank New York atop anyone’s list of potential destinations.

“Experience is the teacher of all things,” Julius Caesar once said. Phil Jackson has a total of 13 NBA championship rings on his resume. He won six as head coach of the Chicago Bulls, five more with the Los Angeles Lakers, and two as a player with the New York Knicks.

The Knicks faithful needs to know that their franchise couldn’t be in better hands.

Next: Why Knicks' trade inactivity was not a bad thing

With the Ides of March approaching, it’s doubtful Jackson will succumb to the same fate as Julius Caesar. Let’s all take a bite out of Phil Jackson’s Zen, and trust in the process. Just remember the state of the Golden State Warriors some five years ago.