It is apparently a good thing the New York Knicks did not try to woo Phil Jackson out of retirement to coach them. Turns out the legendary Jackson, whose 11 NBA titles are the most ever for a head coach -- wanted nothing to do with the Knickerbockers.
Jackson might have actually hit on the perfect description for the Knicks in an interview with HBO's 'Real Sports,' calling them "clumsy" and saying the pieces "don't fit well together."
The Knicks gave the job to Mike Woodson, who had been interim coach after Mike D'Antoni resigned. That's a good thing since the 66-year-old Jackson said "I wasn't going to take the job, that's for sure."
Is Jackson right about the Knicks? There is really little question that he is.
Amare Stoudemire is a movement, pick-and-roll player who fits in an up-tempo system where the ball moves quickly and the middle of the floor is open. That, incidentally, is the Mike D'Antoni system. It's also the way point guard Jeremy Lin thrived while D'Antoni was coach. Carmelo Anthony, on the other hand, is a half-court, stationary, isolation player who wants to dominate and hold the ball looking for his shot.
Those two things don't mix and as long as the Knicks are Anthony's team -- which they clearly are -- the talents of players like Stoudemire and Lin will not be fully utilized.
The Knicks don't seem to be in the frame of mind to blow up what they have, thus Jackson smartly stayed away.