Phil Jackson isn’t keen on commissioner Adam Silver’s recent assertion that the Knicks have been slow to pick up on the triangle, but the Zen Master made it clear Monday that he, too, recognizes his 2-6 team still has a lot to learn, as Marc Berman of the New York Post chronicles. The Knicks team president hinted that he’ll soon be drawing conclusions about members of his roster, which suggests moves won’t be far behind.
“There’s still quite a ways from their execution capabilities as a team,’’ Jackson said. “This is going to happen, [it’s] all part of the process. We think in terms of basketball-wise, Thanksgiving, December, it’s time to really say, ‘If you haven’t gotten it by now, maybe we’ll have to think of you as a learner or not a learner as a ballplayer at that time.’ ’’
There’s more from Jackson’s chat with reporters amid the latest on the struggling Knicks:
- Coach Derek Fisher insists Jackson doesn’t micromanage, as Berman notes in his piece, and Jackson explained that he’s tried to strike a balance between giving input and letting Fisher make his own decisions, observes Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com. “I came back to impart what I learned,’’ Jackson said of his first-time foray into a team’s front office. “I’m constantly giving off ideas in the form of writing notes, communicating in various forms, some things we can try, some things we can initiate. We’ve touched just a very small part of our offense and adding bits and pieces as we go on.’’
- Jackson has said before that input from James Dolan was sparse throughout the offseason, but the Zen Master said Monday that the owner has already spoken to him several times since the start of the season, as Begley points out. “Mostly, it was about pleasantries,” Jackson said. “But, to my surprise, he was happy with how the team performed.”
- Jackson is delegating the duties of negotiation with player agents, as Begley notes via Twitter. “I’ve kind of let [GM] Steve Mills deal with those friends of ours,” Jackson said.