Recent reports from ESPN’s Chris Broussard cite anonymous sources while claiming that there are growing tensions between the New York Knicks’ Tim Hardaway Jr. and Carmelo Anthony as the team continues to struggle in find wins.
In a loss last week to the Brooklyn Nets, Anthony and Hardaway could be seen jawing at each other after Anthony took exception to something Hardaway yelled from the bench during game action. Reportedly, Anthony even threatened to beat Hardaway up in the locker room following the game.
Both players attempted to clear the air Wednesday night after their 109-95 loss to the Spurs. The loss was the Knicks’ 20th out of their first 24 games.
Hardaway insists that while they do have fiery disagreements at times, it’s nothing out of the ordinary.
“We’re brothers,” Hardaway stated. “Brothers argue in the heat of the moment and then they make up. It’s just that simple. I look at Melo as a mentor.”
Anthony agreed. “Me and Tim have no problems,” Anthony said on Wednesday night. “Tim is a guy who I always wrapped my arm around and put under my wing from day one,, helped him through times when he’s been down, and I will continue doing that.”
Although both players claim to be doing just fine with each other, the Knicks’ worst start in franchise history has taken a toll on the team as a whole. “Nobody’s taken a swing at anybody, but there’s a lot of arguing and cursing each other out after games,” said one of the sources.
The stress of the team should be fairly understandable, being 4-20 and all. Players should be upset after such a poor start. If they were complacent, there would actually be more to worry about.
Many pundits figure that the main reason the players are unhappy is because of the changes brought to the team by new team president Phil Jackson and his former player and first year Knicks coach Derek Fisher. Jackson and Fisher have installed the triangle offense, one that both are familiar with after winning multiple championships with the Lakers while employing it.
It’s easy to see why the offense hasn’t been working well: their current players aren’t wired for it. Even though the offense has had proven success in the past, most feel as though the Knicks do not have the personnel to run such a system just yet. It will take several roster moves before the team has the unselfish types of players required to run such an offense. The team is also in dire need of players that are willing to put forth stronger effort defensively.
In light of the reports that claim that the players are upset with the new offense, Anthony himself stated that while the transition has been tough at times, the team hasn’t questioned it.
“We’re all committed.” said Anthony. “We’re all committed to the triangle and to this system.” “We do have times when we do get frustrated. But are we committed as a team to doing what’s right by it? We are committed. We said it from day one.”
The Knicks have actually been competitive in most of their losses, often losing by single digits and usually being within one score late in the fourth quarter. Jackson however, believes that his team’s mentality has kept them from doing the things necessary to pull ahead and get wins in those situations.
“It’s about a loser’s mentality,” Jackson said on after addressing the team on Monday. “It’s not about the skill or the talent level.”
Jackson also discussed possible roster moves on Monday, admitting the possibility of the team making a move this season. Jackson stated that although he doesn’t see any players on the roster right now that are showing an unwillingness to be a part of the organization, he is not opposed to bringing someone in that he believes can help.
“If we evaluate a player and see he’s going to be a long-term player who is going to fit in our organization, we’ll do that,” Jackson said.
Jackson has repeatedly noted that he will not make a move that negatively affects the Knicks’ financial flexibility for the long term. New York is currently poised to have a large amount of salary cap space this summer, space that they hope will allow them to bring in a big name free agent or two, something that the team wasn’t really able to do this offseason.
Despite the claims from both the players and the organization that things are just fine, the truth is that this current Knicks team will not be going anywhere until it brings in the types of players the Jackson believes can handle his system. Until that time comes, most likely in the offseason, expect the Knicks to stumble their way through a terrible year in a conference that does it’s best to provide otherwise. This season might be going worse than Jackson and Fisher expected, but it is up to them to at least keep things calm behind closed doors while evaluating personnel as the team positions itself for some serious roster changes in the coming offseason.
