NY Knicks Rumors: Road to Success Begins with Carmelo Anthony and Mike D'Antoni

The New York Knicks are reeling, and while numerous on-court adjustments must be made, the road to turning their season around begins, and ends, in the locker room.

Head coach Mike D'Antoni has been on the hot seat since Phil Jackson retired, but the Knicks' current inability to put together a winning streak has rendered it scalding. It's unlikely that any decision is made on the head coach's future before Baron Davis returns, but when dealing with Knicks owner James Dolan, anything is possible.

So, how can New York turn its season around? Or better yet, how can it salvage D'Antoni's job, Amar'e Stoudemire's image and Tyson Chandler's sanity?

Through Carmelo Anthony.

Like it or not, the Knicks live and die with Anthony. Their offense is run through him and he will be given the green light a majority of the time. Stoudemire helped revive this franchise, but it's Anthony's offense now.

And no one should have an issue with it.

Yes, Stoudemire needs his touches, and finding Chandler off the pick-and-roll is imperative, but for the Knicks to succeed, Anthony needs to be taking shots and hitting them.

Don't fool yourself into believing Anthony can be a bona fide facilitator as opposed to an inherent scorer. His skill set is clear, and while he is an adept passer, he's no point guard.

Does that mean he cannot do both? Absolutely not, it just means the Knicks can rarely afford a night where he totals one point.

What Anthony has struggled to do his whole career is find the balance between scoring and facilitating. When he first arrived in New York, D'Antoni forced him to devote himself to the seven-seconds-or-less system. The result? Visible struggles and a staggering end to a brief playoff appearance. 

That was to be expected, though. A new state of mind cannot be achieved overnight, and somewhere along the lines both Anthony and D'Antoni forgot that.

For whatever reason, D'Antoni has attempted to appease Anthony by allowing him to isolate his opponents. The coach stepped outside of his comfort zone to allow Anthony to enter his—a noble, yet gullible decision.

Anthony's tactics have proven less than effective, as double-teams flocked his way, leaving the small forward to force the action while Stoudemire and company stood idly by. The fact that Anthony has rarely wavered in his detrimental-to-ball-movement ways is disturbing, and the question as to why must be posed. 

D'Antoni doesn't appear to have the tight-knit relationship with Anthony that he does with Stoudemire, Chandler and the rest of the team. They are rarely seen speaking on the sidelines and, up until recently, Anthony hasn't showed any public support for his coach.

There's the problem.

Assuming Anthony has always been on board with D'Antoni's basketball philosophy is naive. This system forced the All-Star forward to change everything he stood for, and that doesn't come without resentment.

But the time for Anthony to defy D'Antoni's game plan is over. The coach allowed his star to play a personalized style of basketball thus far, and it clearly hasn't worked. Anthony's love for isolation has not only isolated his defender, but his teammates as well.

For the Knicks to succeed, they need to play team basketball; they need to embrace D'Antoni's offensive concepts, Anthony needs to embrace them.

Forget about whether or not D'Antoni is the right coach to lead New York to a title. He is here now, as is Anthony, and it is their job to make it work.

On that front, D'Antoni has been as flexible as possible. He has compromised his offensive schemes and beliefs to appease who was supposed to be the team's second savior. And now it's Anthony's turn to concede.

The forward's backing of D'Antoni is a good start, but is just that, a start. Anthony has finally uttered the right words, but he must now take action. For the Knicks to keep their sinking ship afloat, he must emerge as a true leader.

And Anthony can only lead on the court if he becomes a follower off it.

Follow @danfavale