NBA: Why the New York Knicks Are the Biggest Losers of 2015 Free Agency

In the aftermath of the worst season in franchise history, New York Knicks team president Phil Jackson was determined to build the roster through free agency. Though he has improved the team incrementally, Jackson failed because he didn't provide Carmelo Anthony with a complementary superstar that could help New York contend in a weak Eastern Conference.

The additions of Arron Afflalo—who reached a two-year, $16 million deal with the Knicks last week—and Robin Lopez—who signed for four years and $54 million—give the Knicks instant upgrades at positions of need. Though it looks like the Knicks may have overpaid right now—with the salary cap set to increase in the coming years, per ESPN's Marc Stein—those contracts will turn out to be pretty reasonable.

Projected to start at the 2, Afflalo's shooting may help open up the floor for his teammates and command the attention of opposing defenses on the perimeter. Splitting last season between the Denver Nuggets and Portland Trail Blazers, Afflalo had a bit of a down year. This came after an impressive 2013-14 campaign with the Orlando Magic in which he averaged 18.2 points per game and shot 42.7 percent from three-point range.

If he can bounce back and put up those kind of numbers in New York, Knicks fans won't miss Tim Hardaway Jr, who was traded away on draft day.

As for Lopez, he gives the Knicks a strong defensive presence down low. Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com noted that opponents shot 48 percent at the rim against Lopez last season, better than the likes of Marc Gasol, DeAndre Jordan, Tyson Chandler and Anthony Davis.

Poor interior defense was a big reason why the Knicks allowed 101.2 points per game last season. Lopez can help in that regard:

It's important to remember, though, that this is still a guy who is seven seasons into his NBA career and has done little on the offensive end. Yes he can rebound, but he's never averaged a double-double for a single season.

The former first-round pick out of Stanford has not materialized into the player many projected coming out of college.

So with Afflalo and Lopez—along with the low-risk signings of Derrick Williams and Kyle O'Quinn as marquee pickups, the Knicks have a team that's going to win more than 17 games, but that's not exactly something to get too excited about. 

Knicks studio analyst Alan Hahn made a good point after New York's wave of signings:

After sitting through back-to-back dreadful seasons, Knicks fans not only expected more, but they deserve better as well.

When James Dolan agreed to pay Jackson $60 million over five years to oversee the basketball operations of the organization, the Zen Master was expected to use his thorough understanding of the game, and his combined 13 NBA titles as a player and coach to lure the sport's finest to the Big Apple.

Stars were supposed to want to join the Knicks because of Jackson, but that hasn't been the case to this point. This has made his first two years in New York all the more frustrating. 

Jackson had some strong words about free agency back in March, per Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com:

"

It's not about who is going to have the most money anymore. That playing field has pretty much evened out, especially with the amount of money that's coming into the league. It's going to be whose attractive enough to get the people they want to play their style of play. The way they're doing it. So establishing how you want to play basketball is important. And there's only a few teams in the league that can say this is our definitive way that we want to play. We want to be those teams. So we have eyesight on who can play in our system and who wants to play.

"

With about $26 million in cap space at the outset of free agency, the Knicks could have signed one of the big names to a max contract, but flopped.

It is unknown whether Jackson's unrelenting commitment to the triangle offense or the dysfunctional cloud hovering over the franchise has impeded the Knicks' ability to attract premier talent. But the bottom line is that the Jordan's, LaMarcus Aldridge's and Greg Monroe's of the world won't be wearing blue and orange in 2015.

Heck, Aldridge didn't even give Knicks executives a chance to make a pitch, as he canceled his scheduled meeting with the team, per Sean Highkin of ProBasketballTalk.nbcsports.com.

Yes the Knicks had an outside shot at landing Jordan or Aldridge, but with Jackson in charge, the Knicks hoped to never be discounted. 

Victor Baldizon/Getty Images

The same way Pat Riley is always a threat to make a splash in the offseason is how Jackson should be looked at.

The fact that Monroe spurned New York for Milwaukee is an indictment of how mad things are around the Mecca of Basketball these days. 

In mid-April, a league executive told Frank Isola of the New York Daily News that Monroe to the Knicks was "about as close to a done deal as you can get."

And what happened? Monroe signed with the Milwaukee Bucks for three years and $50 million, while the Knicks settled for Robin Lopez.

Granted, Monroe wasn't up there with Aldridge and Jordan as the elite players of this free agent class, but he would have proved that Jackson can recruit stars to the bright lights of New York. It also would have given the Knicks a legitimate option outside of Anthony.

Adam Schein of Sports Net New York was particularly displeased with the Knicks president after Monroe agreed to terms with the Bucks:

For most other teams, last week's acquisitions would have been enough. But the Knicks have been underachieving for too long to get a pass.

New York is a basketball town through and through and is desperate for a winner. When Jackson came over, a new era of Knicks basketball filled with promise and excitement appeared within reach.

So far, Jackson has fallen short of all expectations, unable to change the losing culture that's surrounded this organization for decades now.