Well you can say that Phil Jackson has some work to do in the next few years. In this day and age with the NBA salary, it is safe to say that the Knicks chances of keeping Carmelo Anthony will be easier said than done. But lets address the needs for the Knicks for this upcoming season.
First and foremost, Phil Jackson will need to re-sign Carmelo Anthony. We all know Carmelo is going to play the field and flirt with some options. Yes, you can make the argument that you can’t build a team around him or he won’t be worth the max deal that the Knicks will offer him. But any way you slice it, Carmelo is an elite offensive talent and can recruit once the bad contracts of Amar’e Stoudemire and Andrea Bargnani. Melo is essential to the Knicks if they don’t want to rebuild from the foundation.
Once they have re-signed Carmelo, the Knicks will need to bring in a new coach. Let’s face it, it’s hard to imagine Mike Woodson still being there after this horrendous season and the hiring of Phil Jackson, who will want his own guy there to follow his philosophy. Steve Kerr has been in the news ever since the hire of Phil Jackson. It almost seems perfect. Just think about it. Smart guy who actually played under Phil in the 90s with the Chicago Bulls. Also, Steve has experience of working in the front office when he was at the Phoenix Suns. Okay, he doesn’t have head coaching experience, but it is a good start though. Whether its Steve Kerr or another guy, it’s time for Woodson and the Knicks to part ways. That relationship has sizzled out.
I’m going to say this as nicely as possible. The Knicks have got to get J.R. Smith out of there! Doing this will be killing more than a few birds with one stone. Lets look at the benefits of this move. If done right, trading Smith will open some cap space for the 2015 offseason. Also, he will be one less headache for the new coach to deal with. J.R. Smith is a talented player who is occasionally worth the trouble. He is either a risk of playing selfish basketball or getting suspended is some fashion. This is not a top priority but it is time to move on from his undermining of authority.
If there is a Least Valuable Player award, I would give this Raymond Felton. You can say that most of the troubles on both sides of the courts stemmed from that position. Felton did not pan out to be what the Knicks thought especially on the defensive end and backup Prigioni seemed to be a superior option because he could defend better. No matter what, the Knicks will have to look in free agency to find an athletic point guard. Felton and Prigioni are still on the books for next season but it is still a need to be addressed in the offseason. If they are going into the 2014-15 season with Felton starting, they did not address their needs during the offseason.
Lastly, they will need to sign a big man that is purely defensive-minded. I’m sure that the Knicks cannot expect for Tyson Chandler to hold up for a full 82-game season. So finding someone that can come in and do the dirty work is essential. But finding a big man is harder today now than ever. The big man is a dying breed. In the 80’s and 90’s, you could just find a big man to do the dirty work somewhere. But now, the league is ran by guards and the rules are in favor for the small guy. The thing that the Knicks have going for them is expiring contracts which can be used to find someone who has worn out their welcome.
Not an impossible task to do, but it is a lot of work for first time President, Phil Jackson, to do this offseason. With these moves, they could easily be a 3rd seed in a very week Eastern Conference.
The Sideliner 