Schmeelk: Knicks Are Talking The Talk About Defense, But Will They Walk The Walk?
By John Schmeelk
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So far, Knicks training camp has been uneventful and controversy-free (forgetting Carmelo Anthony's foolish "underrated superstar" comment), a nice change for a franchise that fired its general manager right before camp last year. Knicks players and coaches have said all the right things (once again, ignoring Melo), but we've heard that before. It's much easier to say than to do.
Derek Fisher taught only defense on his first day of practice, and preached that it would be the cornerstone of the Knicks' success this year. We heard the same from Mike Woodson. Players talked about committing to it and how the new system is one that is easy to understand and execute. We heard the same thing when Woodson replaced Mike D'Antoni. Amar'e Stoudemire says he is going to play defense (and that he's phenomenal), but what makes anyone think this year will be any different for him on that end of the floor?
There is one big difference this year: The franchise is now centered around Phil Jackson and Fisher. Those two guys, especially the former, are not going anywhere. Jackson has a longer and bigger contract than everyone on the team except for Anthony. Many players are also on one-year deals, playing for free agency. The concept this year is simple: buy in or get out. Play hard or sit down. Jackson went after Kobe Bryant publically many times. Does anybody think guys like like Stoudemire, Andre Bargnani or J.R. Smith are immune to the Zen Master's barbed comments?
In other words, Fisher has the hammer. Jackson will not only let him use it, but urge him to use it. Everyone assumes (and rightfully so) that there will be improvement defensively by default, simply because of the scheme adjustments from Woodson to Fisher. No more switching on every play, yeah! But how much improvement? The Knicks traded their best interior defender for an upgrade to Raymond Felton, but Jose Calderon isn't that good of a defender. Samuel Dalembert is slowing down at 33 years old and Stoudemire, Bargnani and new addition Jason Smith aren't known as good defenders.
Fisher also has to be able to motivate his players to give a consistent effort on defense, something that Woodson was never able to do. Creating a culture around defense is part of that, and even though Woodson talked a good game in that respect, he never followed through with the way he handled his players. Scorers who couldn't guard anyone routinely played instead of superior defenders. None of this talk will mean anything if Fisher makes those kinds of decisions, and the early sense is that he won't.
No one is expecting a player like Stoudemire or Bargnani to become Ben Wallace in his prime, but asking both players to try to follow the rules of the defensive system that Fisher is installing is not asking too much. There is enough depth on this team at every position that Fisher has the option of making a move anywhere there is someone not willing to commit on defense. The Knicks don't owe anything to any of the players on this roster, and Fisher has to coach that way.
It's the only way the Knicks can become even a top 20 defensive team with the talent that they have. It might take a minor miracle to get into the top 15 with the defensive talent on the roster, but that's the only way the Knicks have a reasonable chance of winning a playoff series or two. It's a huge challenge for a first-year head coach, but it appears that Fisher has embraced it. When the preseason starts in four days, we'll see how much he is getting through to his team.
You can follow me on Twitter @Schmeelk for everything Knicks, Giants and the world of sports.
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