New York Knicks: David Fizdale to pattern strategy after teams from 1970s
New York Knicks head coach David Fizdale plans to build the current team with another squad in mind: The championship teams from the 1970s.
In more than 70 years of existence, the New York Knicks have won two championships. It’s an unfortunate truth, but the disheartening nature of that reality is that the Knicks have ignored what worked for those iconic teams.
While the defensive aspect of New York’s success was a constant throughout the 80s and 90s, the balance of the teams of the 1970s has been undervalued.
The Knicks of the 1990s are iconic, but the absence of ideal ball movement proved problematic. The guards tended to struggle to get the ball to Patrick Ewing in the post against elite defensive opponents, and the offense consistently rated at a below average level.
According to Marc Berman of The New York Post, recently hired head coach David Fizdale plans to build his team in a similar manner to the championship squads of the 1970s.
"“I know my history — that’s the one thing I know,’’ Fizdale said. “I’ve watched all of their old teams. That’s part of why I wanted to be here. I want to have an unselfish ballclub just like them.”Fizdale added: “There’s a lot of known parts from different [Knicks] teams I want. The roughness from the Riley-[Jeff] Van Gundy teams. [In the 1970s] I loved how they ran the floor and moved the ball back in their day. I want dynamic guard play like Walt [Frazier] and those guys. I want all of it.”"
Some might question if playing like a team from 45 years ago is the most rational approach, but Knicks of the 1970s’ strategy would work in any era.
For those unfamiliar, the Knicks won championships in 1969-70 and 1972-73, and reached the NBA Finals in 1971-72. New York also made the Eastern Conference Finals in 1968-69, 1970-71, and 1973-74.
One could certainly focus on the talent that New York had during those championship runs, but the key was one word: Unselfishness.
The Knicks were an elite defensive team during the 1970s, but they were also a San Antonio Spurs type of franchise in the way they valued ball movement.
A shining example of the value of unselfishness was the unexpected success of the Rolls Royce Backcourt. Walt Frazier and Earl Monroe were viewed as a terrible fit due to their ball-dominant natures, but they ultimately sacrificed their statistics for the betterment of the team.
For the contemporary Knicks, prioritizing defense and trusting one another on offense will be the key to winning at a championship level.
Must Read: Sleepers to consider in the 2018 NBA Draft
The question is: Will the New York Knicks embrace the strategy that should’ve been implemented long ago?