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The following was submitted by Saverio Mastrianni, as always if you have a
contribution please send to theknicksblog@gmail.com.
I feel as if people are underappreciating Mike D’Antoni’s abilities in his slightly under two year tenure as Knicks head coach.
That may seem counter-intuitiveat first, and if you take it on a literal level, it is. Yet, he was not brought here to make the playoffs these past two years. He has tried in vain, to the chagrin of the faithful who want to see the future grow before our very eyes. Brilliant or inept, the plan has always been to build a viable contender in 2010. To lure topflight free agents to the Mecca of Basketball based on the appeal of the franchise, the city, and the most popular coach in basketball. I’m unsure if the latter is quantifiable and true, but I know that if I was an NBA player, I’d rather play for D’Antoni than anyone else. Maybe Jerry Sloan, Popovichand Phil reach players on a different, more complete level (better defensive coaches, have systems with more proven success….and more proven players, but I digress.)
D’Antoni, whether you want to believe this or not, treats these players like adults and expects them to prepare themselves. He is not overbearing and overly meticulous. He does not demand perfection or everyone to approach the game like Michael Jordan because not every player can. He asks players to play their games to the best of their abilities, which is an important point. Jackson never got one ounce more effort from Jordan because of “zen,” the fact is MJ would rip the board out of his hands and draw up a play during timeouts. Pat Riley never once had to ask Patrick Ewing to sweat before the game or stay two hours after practice. Does Mike Brown say to Lebron, “You need to be extra great tonight” then pat himself on the back for a great coaching decision?
This team needs an extension from the coach. One that needs to win just as badly.
Where does this characterization come from? I read Seven Seconds or Less. His post-game speeches are brief; when he talks to the media, he may throw a player under the bus, but it is in a jocular manner. He is simply honest, but not brutally honest like Larry Brown as Knicks coach. As an adult, you can take an honest assessment of your play. If not, frankly, you’re not championship material.
It takes a special breed of player, a special team, to overcome the league’s other twenty-nine franchises and become the league’s indisputable alpha dog. It takes hard, strenuous work that many players simply would rather spend doing a litany of other things. Certain players simply are not wired to be champions. Read more…








tonight in Cleveland.