Phil Jackson agrees with Jeff Van Gundy’s assessment of Triangle Offense
Oct 24, 2014, 9:30 AM EDT
Phil Jackson Jeff Van Gundy, current analyst for ESPN and former head coach of the New York Knicks, recently downplayed the impact that any one system has on a given team’s success.
Phil Jackson is now president of basketball operations for the Knicks, but as a head coach in Chicago and Los Angeles, he used the Triangle Offense consistently, and it was undoubtedly a key component of his teams winning a total of 11 NBA titles.
New York will be implementing it this season under Derek Fisher and assistant coaches Kurt Rambis and Jim Cleamons, but Van Gundy said that ultimately, it’s the players who will determine a club’s wins and losses.
“It won’t be the triangle itself that will be the reason they win or lose,” he said. “It’s going to come down to Carmelo Anthony playing exceptionally well. [Iman] Shumpert and J.R. bouncing back with a big year. J.R. Smith playing well. It’s not going to be because of a system.
“I think anybody confusing a system with a reason for success is making a huge mistake. Systems don’t win games. Players do. All you try to do in any system you incorporate is put players in their areas of strength and try to hide and minimize their weaknesses.”
Somewhat surprisingly, Phil Jackson agreed with his former rival‘s assertion.
Focus on triangle off by JvG is 👍. Execution is what always counts. Sound off w/out it fails, however execution with sound off will win.
— Phil Jackson (@PhilJackson11) October 24, 2014
The point, here, is that the Triangle Offense (or any offensive system) is a means to an end. It’s a structural framework that sets a foundation in place for how a team should behave over the long grind of the regular season.
Jackson knows as well as anyone that the players are what decide things, but a cohesive system can make a lot of those players interchangeable, at least to a certain extent; the Spurs are a great example of this. He’ll work to improve the roster once he has the cap space to do so, and for now, he’s content to play along with the national media — even when they may be taking subtle shots at his success.
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- romestar82 - Oct 24, 2014 at 11:36 AM
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ZEN
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- hwatt - Oct 24, 2014 at 12:10 PM
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those losing seasons in LA kinda gave him no choice but to say that.
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- ranfan12 - Oct 24, 2014 at 5:02 PM
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By losing season you mean out of the playoffs? If you’re talking about overall W/L records, I don’t think the lakers had a losing season with him as coach, unless I’m overlooking something. I remember Phil getting fired following a loss in the Finals against the Pistons, and Lakers missed the playoffs after that. They hadn’t been out of the playoffs at all since he was head coach. I could agree with considering every season without a ring a lost season if that’s what you’re referring to
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- cantonbound13 - Oct 24, 2014 at 1:04 PM
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11 championships in 20 years of coaching! I wouldn’t doubt the Zen Master.
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- amlowlife - Oct 24, 2014 at 1:31 PM
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Bet PJ has already put the finishing touches on his 1st book about his time as Knicks prez. I’m thinking he’ll get at least 3 more books out of this stint…
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- apkyletexas - Oct 24, 2014 at 8:26 PM
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He’ll backstab Carmelo a couple of times real nice just to pump up the book sales. Ask Kobe and Shaq.
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- andrewwiggins22 - Oct 24, 2014 at 1:33 PM
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It’s very true. Let him coach LeBron & co. and see him collects more rings after.
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- george7101 - Oct 24, 2014 at 4:23 PM
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I am shocked that Jim Cleamons is an assistant coach. 15 years ago he was the coach of the Mavericks and tried to incorporate the triangle and failed miserably. He was only the coach for 1 season. Phil’s trick of putting ex-Lakers as coaches is a mistake. What he seems to forget is that the Triangle Offense guru was Tex Winter, his assistant that he had in Chicago and then brought to LA. That is the real person behind the Triangle, Phil just stood in front of the team and took the credit.
Derek Fisher is touting the triangle as if it is magical (probably because he has no choice since Phil hired in order to coach by proxy) is going to cause him to look very bad this year. I will be absolutely and completely shocked if the Knicks make the playoffs.
I am anxious to see if Phil turns out to be another Issah Thomas for the Knicks – a person who excelled in playing the game but was grossly over his head when it comes to putting together and running a team.
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- mackcarrington - Oct 24, 2014 at 7:16 PM
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Phil is mostly the opposite of Isaiah Thomas. Phil didn’t excel in playing the game but did excel at running a team.
We don’t yet know if he is good at putting a team together.
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- 7bigal7 - Oct 24, 2014 at 6:34 PM
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Any coach that wants to win is going to have some kind of a system. And it does not take a mental heavy weight to figure out that it takes good players to make any system work. And as far as the triangle offense – it is a proven success along with Phil Jackson, in spite of what any haters might say. They are talking with their heart and not their brain!!!
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- 22yearsagotoday - Oct 24, 2014 at 7:10 PM
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Master.
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- kdaddy87 - Oct 25, 2014 at 12:48 PM
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II dont understand this phil ora, i mean the dude never developed anybody. He always had veteran players and/or elite level players. He wasnt jerry sloan making ohmet okur a all-star.
