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Schmeelk: After Just 6 Games, Dissent (AKA Business As Usual) At MSG

By John Schmeelk
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The Knicks are six games into their season. They have been disappointing in those six games, going 2-4. But it has been only six games of an 82-game season with a roster that was almost completely turned over in the offseason with a brand new head coach. It's also important to remember that between Derrick Rose's trial and Joakim Noah's hamstring injury, the Knicks had no chance in the preseason to play any games with their full roster.

A slow start should have been expected. Is there any excuse to be last in the league in defensive efficiency or defensive rebounding percentage? Of course not, but those things can be corrected given time. Apparently for Knicks president Phil Jackson, however, it's getting late early.

AFTER SIX GAMES.

Yes, that's as dumb as it sounds.

Ian Begley of ESPN reported Tuesday that sources told him Jackson was upset with his team's unwillingness to run the triangle offense. (Guess where that leak came from.) The fact that the team was 13th in offensive efficiency didn't matter. It only mattered that it didn't happen running the triangle. There's nothing like the Knicks president undermining his hand-picked head coach, Jeff Hornacek, six games into a season.

Phil Jackson
Knicks president Phil Jackson (Photo by Bryan R. Smith/ AFP/Getty Images)

Later Tuesday, the Knicks decided to announce Kurt Rambis would be put in charge of the team's struggling defense. This is the same Rambis that was Phil Jackson's right-hand man with the Lakers, replaced Derek Fisher last season and was the lone holdover from last year's staff at Jackson's behest. He has no history of being any sort of defensive guru.

Of course, this is the Knicks, and conflict between the front office and the coach isn't enough. The team's veteran leader and longest-tenured player, Carmelo Anthony, had to throw his two cents in on the idea of Rambis being put in charge of the defense: "Whether we're comfortable with it or not, it is what it is, so we have to buy into it."

That is about as tepid of an endorsement imaginable. It's almost outright defiance. It was widely reported Anthony didn't like playing for Rambis last year, and a statement like that lends further credence to those reports.

MORE: Schmeelk: The Odd Impact of Joakim Noah

When Hornacek was asked why Rambis was given the responsibility, he said, "It could have been anybody." That may well be true, but it wasn't anybody. It was Rambis, Jackson's guy. It simply looks like Jackson is once again trying to coach the team from his perch as team president, even if that's not the case. The optics are awful.

Jackson already fired Fisher for not consulting Jackson's hand-picked assistants enough or running the triangle with enough orthodoxy to please Jackson. Now, the Knicks president appears to be doing the same thing with Hornacek after just six games. It makes little to no sense, and by any measure is counterproductive.

At some point, if the Knicks want to be a stable franchise, this type of stuff needs to stop. Jackson needs to let Hornacek coach the team the way he wants. Anthony needs to stop publicly questioning a decision by the head coach, good or bad.

This was supposed to be a new start for the Knicks this year, but right now it looks like it is much more of the same.  That's a bad thing for Knicks fans.

For everything Knicks, Giants and the world of sports, please follow John at @Schmeelk

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