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When the New York Knicks initially hired Jeff Hornacek, it confused a lot of people. Most fans in New York were just pleased that Phil Jackson didn’t pick Kurt Rambis, because he was an absolute disaster as the interim head coach. But Hornacek’s hiring was bizarre due to the fact that Jackson had long claimed to want a coach familiar with the triangle.
Hornacek was a guard in the NBA for 14 seasons, and this is his first coaching gig on a team that he didn’t play for. Under a coach named Cotton Fitzsimmons, Hornacek was actually a part of the triangle offense, but he ultimately didn’t use it in his time as coach of the Phoenix Suns.
He had a record of 101-112 during his tenure there, but the team went 48-34 in his first season with them. They played an uptempo offense that featured the guards offensively, but then the Suns made some inexplicable decisions concerning Goran Dragic and Isaiah Thomas.
Hornacek will have to coach the Knicks a bit differently. Kristaps Porzingis and Carmelo Anthony are the two best players on this squad, so the offense must reflect that. Is the triangle the ideal system to operate for New York? Probably not, but Hornacek also can’t run those two guys into the ground with a fast offense. Anthony believes that his new coach can turn New York’s luck around.
“It sets the stage for us to do that,” Carmelo said to WNBC-TV on Saturday. “[It’s a] new opportunity, something new to play with, something fresh, a clean plate. So hopefully we can build off of this momentum.”
It remains to be seen how long Jackson will stick around. He could bolt for the Los Angeles Lakers next summer, because that team recently hired one of his former players in Luke Walton. Also, Jackson is engaged to Lakers president Jeannie Buss, and it has been clear that he doesn’t spend much time in New York. He’ll let Hornacek run a system based on spacing as a result, because the Knicks would be better off scrapping the triangle offense after what happened this season.
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