Mike D'Antoni Resigns: Winners and Losers

Mike D'Antoni's time in the Big Apple has come to an end, and while there are certainly mixed feelings about the head coach's departure, it's undoubtedly the move that needed to be made.

It's time for the Knicks to "start fresh" with the talent they have in Carmelo Anthony, Jeremy Lin, Amare Stoudemire and their supporting cast.

While it's unclear which direction the Knicks will go as they try to find a replacement for D'Antoni, it's clear that the way things were over the past few weeks in New York just wasn't cutting it.

With D'Antoni's departure comes a lot of questions on what the remainder of the Knicks' 2011-12 season will look like, and while that's a concerning reality for Knicks fans, it's at least a better place to be than where the Knicks were before D'Antoni stepped down. 

So who are the big winners and losers of D'Antoni's resignation? Read on to find out. 

Losers: Mike D'Antoni

With Mike D'Antoni's recent failure and and subsequent departure from New York, it's all but certain that his days of coaching in the NBA are over. 

While his overall record as a head coach in the NBA isn't terrible, with 388 wins and 339 losses, it's pretty evident that his style of coaching and his ability to help teams win just isn't there anymore.

In his three-and-a-half seasons with the Knicks, D'Antoni accumulated 121 wins and 167 losses, which just doesn't cut it. While it's arguable whether or not D'Antoni should have even lasted this long in the position he was in, it's clear that he made the right move by resigning.

All D'Antoni proved in his years with the Knicks was that he can't run a successful system without an elite point guard and that he can't get players to rally around him. Both of those things combined equal a definite end to his NBA coaching career. 

Losers: New York Knicks Front Office

Mike D'Antoni technically "resigned;" it would be foolish to think that the Knicks front office didn't at least encourage him to make that move. By D'Antoni resigning from the team, it showed us two things about the Knicks front office. 

First of all, that they have no control over what is going on with their franchise at the moment, other than making questionable acquisitions, like J.R. Smith, that are hurting the chemistry of the team. D'Antoni resigning, which, in all honesty, probably came with a little coercion from the big wigs with the Knicks, still proved that he was calling the shots in the Big Apple.

Secondly, it's becoming more and more clear that the Knicks front office has no idea what its team needs, and is so far disconnected from the success of their franchise that the future of the Knicks looks quite bleak.

Not only have the Knicks made some questionable acquisitions as of late, like Baron Davis, J.R. Smith and even Tyson Chandler, they have also shown that they don't know what kind of coach their team needs.

The Knicks don't have leadership in their locker room, but more importantly, they don't have leadership in their front office, which is more concerning as the Knicks move forward with the future of their franchise. 

Winner: New York Knicks Fanbase

Things weren't fun in the Big Apple since the 2012 NBA All-Star break, with the Knicks losing six of their seven games since returning from the break.

Linsanity was all but dead, Carmelo Anthony had returned to his true form of not being a leader in the locker room and on the court and the Knicks' hopes of being a legitimate contender in the Eastern Conference appeared to be all but over.

While everything looked bleak in New York, Mike D'Antoni's resignation provided Knicks fans with a little bit of light at the end of the tunnel.

With D'Antoni out of the Knicks organization, New York fans were given a little bit of hope that things might actually change in New York if the Knicks are able to bring in a legitimate coach that can demand respect of the team and get players to rally around him.

While the Knicks organization still has a lot to prove to its fans, moving forward without D'Antoni is a good place to start, as it's the new beginning that Knicks fans can find a little bit of faith in. 

Winner: Jeremy Lin

Listing Jeremy Lin as a winner in this article might seem silly, as D'Antoni is the reason why Linsanity began in the first place, but just hear me out.

Lin earned a role in the starting lineup technically because Mike D'Antoni made the call to put him in, but in reality, Lin found his way in the Knicks starting five because they really didn't have any better options to go with.

With that being said, It's clear that Lin isn't necessarily the same player he was when Linsanity began before the NBA All-Star break, and one of the reasons for that is the way that D'Antoni has been managing his minutes.

For some reason, D'Antoni thought it would be smart to give Baron "Inefficiency" Davis time over Lin, and that decision certainly backfired for the Knicks. While Lin is turnover-prone and at times too aggressive of a player, there's no doubt that the Knicks need him on the court for 40-plus minutes a game, and he wasn't getting that with D'Antoni.

With D'Antoni gone, it might just be time for Linsanity to start up again, as long as the coach replacing D'Antoni knows how to manage Lin and his minutes on the court.  

Winner: Jerry Sloan and Phil Jackson

Sam Amick of Sports Illustrated is reporting that there is interest from Jerry Sloan in the New York Knicks' open head coaching position, and that's great news for the Knicks front office and fans alike.

Whenever a head coaching position opens up, Phil Jackson's name pops up as a possible replacement, and that's also good news for the New York Knicks.

Both of those guys are proven leaders and proven head coaches in the ranks of the NBA, and if the Knicks were able to lure one of them into bringing their coaching talents to the Big Apple, the future in New York would be that much brighter.

Both Jerry Sloan and Phil Jackson are winners based on D'Antoni's resignation because it opens up the door for a possible return to the NBA for those two veteran coaches.

While only the bigwigs calling the shots for the Knicks know who their next head coach is going to be, both Jerry Sloan and Phil Jackson would be great fits for the team, and hopefully, the Knicks front office realizes that. 

Winner: Carmelo Anthony

Carmelo Anthony and Mike D'Antoni didn't exactly mesh in their time together in New York.

D'Antoni's style of offense was rooted in a transition break that led to a solidified half-court set with offensive options developing as the play ran its course. That kind of offense works for most team-oriented players in the NBA, but it certainly didn't work for 'Melo.

Anthony is the kind of player that thrives in isolation situations where the ball is in his hands and he has the decision of what to do with it, regardless of what is going on around him. 'Melo and D'Antoni's offensive styles of play didn't mix, and that's evidenced by the sub-.500 record 'Melo accumulated with D'Antoni as the head coach.

'Melo is certainly a good player, and he's one of the best pure shooters in the league, but the way D'Antoni was running the Knicks offense just didn't work with the kind of player 'Melo is, and now that D'Antoni's out, 'Melo has the chance to start over.

Carmelo is the real winner in D'Antoni's resignation, because it appeared that it had come down to either 'Melo or D'Antoni leaving the Big Apple, and for the sake of 'Melo's legacy, he's luck that D'Antoni was the one to go.

Will 'Melo be able to lead the Knicks now that D'Antoni's gone? Weigh in with your thoughts in the comment section below.  

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