Phil Jackson Comments on Triangle Offense, Knicks' Playoff Hopes in 2016-17

New York Knicks president Phil Jackson is sticking by the heavily criticized triangle offense and expects it to help his team make the postseason in 2016-17, he told WNBC-TV (via ESPN.com's Ian Begley).  

"Why not? I don't know what's so great about what's out here in the East," Jackson said when asked if the Knicks could go to the playoffs. "We can fill that role. ... I think we're getting experience. Kristaps [Porzingis] is still a young player; he may need another year of experience. But we have some experienced guys who can play."

The Knicks are coming off of a 32-50 season after they won just 17 games in 2014-15. Porzingis, last year's No. 4 overall pick, emerged as a promising young star in his rookie campaign, and it looked like 2015-16 would be a much more successful season when New York got off to a 22-22 start.

However, the team fizzled out from there. It fired head coach Derek Fisher in February and finished 9-19 with Kurt Rambis at the helm of an offense that averaged 98.4 points per game, the league's fourth-worst mark. 

Though those numbers aren't scaring Jackson away from the triangle, he might make some small changes given the league's newfound obsession with long-distance shooting ability. He discussed those potential tweaks with Turner Sports' Shaquille O'Neal and ESPN's Hannah Storm at a promotional event (via Begley). 

"The three-point line has become our affection because it means more when we make a three-point shot. So the spacing has changed dramatically," Jackson said. "So the triangle can still be a part of that, but it has to adapt."

It will be up to new head coach Jeff Hornacek, who signed a three-year deal last Wednesday, to institute Jackson's vision and try to complete a culture turnaround at Madison Square Garden. 

Other than a 32-year-old Carmelo Anthony and the 20-year-old Porzingis, though, the Knicks are in need of a serious facelift. Their first order of business this offseason should be addressing the point guard position, as they received little from Jose Calderon and Langston Galloway this past year. 

Begley reported that the Knicks have at least $18 million to spend this offseason, and Jackson told SNY that he is looking for "players that fit what we try to do, have a collective thought. Team players."

If Jackson can fill out New York's roster, then making the playoffs might not be so far-fetched. Despite a season in which the Knicks finished 18 games under .500, they were just 12 games out of the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. 

With the right personnel and talent, they could make up that difference and then some in a conference that had just two teams win more than 48 games in 2015-16.