The reasons for becoming the laughing stock of the NBA

“I didn’t grow up with good curtsy. I remember the curtsy being in the final, but the kids after me didn’t see it.”

In one sentence, Kevin Durant brought up in an interview with the radio station HOT 97 in October what the NBA has seen for 20 years – the decline of the once glamorous New York Knicks.

The last of two championships was almost 47 years ago, the last time in the playoffs was in the 2012/2013 season. Since the turn of the millennium, the Knicks have only won 40 percent of their games – no team in the league has a worse record.

Durant and Irving say curtsey

Everything should get better this season. Owner James Dolan promised fans that some superstars would move to Madison Square Garden, names like Durant and Kyrie Irving were traded. To create cap space for it, Kristaps Porzingis was specially traded to the Dallas Mavericks in January.

They were hoping for the number 1 pick in the NBA draft to bring super talent Zion Williamson to the Big Apple. After the Knicks were only drawn in third place in the Draft Lottery, the New Orleans Pelicans secured the services of Williamson in first place.

When both Durant and Irving decided against switching to the Knicks and instead joined the Brooklyn Nets together, the disaster was perfect.

Instead of the superstars promised by Dolan, in addition to number 3 pick RJ Barrett in players like Julius Randle, Bobby Portis, Taj Gibson and Marcus Morris, only average NBA players were picked up, which is also reflected in the results.

Owner Dolan interferes in personnel decisions

In the last game against the Golden State Warriors, the Knicks missed their next embarrassing bankruptcy. Against the long injuries of their superstars Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, the Knicks lost a 22-point lead. In the end, they just won after extra time with 124: 122.

The Knicks had previously lost ten games in a row, were only able to record five wins and 20 defeats at the same time, making them the second worst team in the entire league. The end for coach David Fizdale came as no surprise last Friday.

But for many, the trainer, like his eleven predecessors in the past 20 years, is merely the scapegoat of owner James Dolan, who is said to be the actual gravedigger of the Knicks.

For years there have been reports of how the 64-year-old repeatedly undermines the authority of his head coaches, interferes in personnel decisions and thus causes unrest and instability in the team.

According to ESPN-Reports it was he who wanted to let Carmelo Anthony play as a small forward at the time, even though the coach had actually intended this as a power forward. In 2013, he is said to have forced the obligation of Andrea Bargnani on the former General Manager Glen Grunwald – against his will.

Legend Jackson’s commitment as president fails

He is also said to have interfered again and again in the personnel decisions of former President Phil Jackson, even when he announced in 2017 that he would keep his distance in the future and let him and GM Steve Mills work in peace. “It’s all up to Phil. It’s all up to Steve. I work on my music, they work on the basketball team,” he said in an interview with ESPN.

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Jackson, one of the greatest coaches in the NBA and as a player twice champion with the Knicks but without any experience as a sports director, should lead this to new splendor from 2014. He was joined by Mills, who had never worked for an NBA franchise before. A combination that would not have existed in any other franchise.

Quite a few claim in retrospect that Jackson would have had a chance with an experienced general manager at his side. The 74-year-old had to take his hat off in September 2017 and was replaced by Mills of all people, who probably got this position because Dolan considers him a tireless loyalist.

Fizdale lacks a clear line and plan

Nevertheless, of course, Fizdale, who is now being replaced by assistant Mike Miller on an interim basis, cannot be completely absolved of the guilt for the current sporting misery, after all, a record of 21 wins and 83 defeats in less than two years is not by chance.

Critics accused the former coach of, among other things, a lack of rotation and insufficient trust in the young players. RJ Barrett in particular, but also players like Mitchell Robinson, Kevin Knox and Frank Ntilikina undoubtedly have more potential than they have brought to the court so far.

It should therefore be a matter of hiring a coach who is known for promoting talent and who has a clear plan so that the team can grow together in an organic process.

Will Ujiri be the savior of the Knicks?

But there are also aspects that still give reason for hope. Financially, the curtsey is loud Forbes Magazine the fourth year at the top of the most valuable teams. The value is currently four billion, which means an eleven percent increase in value compared to the previous year.

In addition, the name Masai Ujiri is traded again and again in New York. As general manager, the native Nigerian led the Toronto Raptors surprisingly to the first championship in franchise history last season and, according to US sources, should at least not be averse to employment with the Knicks.

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He is particularly fascinated by the possibility of building something and creating something big. Influential voices are said to have advised him against accepting an offer from the Knicks – should it actually come about.

It remains to be hoped that they will achieve the turnaround in New York in the near future. So that future generations – in contrast to Kevin Durant – can grow up with good curtsy again.

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