Phil Jackson questions if Porzingis is too tall for basketball

...pathetic moribund atrocity. Smith comes up with gems. In the end, I had to snicker how Bayless was trolling with the O'Quinn comment.

 

Haha oh man I was waiting for that. I wasn't sure if they'd discussed it because I'd missed first take all week, so glad Screamin' A got some time devoted to this. I think at its core, Phil's comment is probably supposed to be motivation for Porzingis to prove him wrong, but it's such a stupid thing to say to the NY media and fans.

He seems entirely the wrong personality to be a GM, and not having him as ours is starting to look smart. Had he been here, imagine the friction he'd be causing between Jeanie and Jim, and even Mitch. Phil is actually making Jim look good here, because although Jim doesn't say a lot, that also means he doesn't say many stupid things, and he appears to let Mitch do his job most of the time. He's also not bashing players that leave the team as they walk or are traded, the Lakers don't do that because it's idiotic, and I can't imagine it makes figure free agents want to go wherever that's being done.

 

All those questions about how Jackson will do as a GM will be loudly asked again. Auerbach must be grinning in his grave. It is year 2. If they are not competitive this year and the next then he is gone. I must admit I feel guilty pleasure seeing the bombastic Smith suffer.

 

Anything Phil said in that interview was false?
He's called KP Pau Gasol, then he's talked about his potential inability to play D. So what would a player be who's like Gasol on offense and can't play as good of D because he can't get low enough? He wouldn't be a terrible NBA player.

Assuming it's not, and I don't think it is, what's the problem?
Did PJ make the draft choice? I doubt it.

 

Well he's the GM so I'd have to think it was his pick or he at least had a very large say in it.

The only problem that fans have with this is that there were so many more NBA ready picks they could have made there instead. Stan Johnson, Emmanuel Mudiay, and Mario Hezonja were all more ready prospects that he could have taken. Instead he went with a project and instead of doing what's best for the company and talking the kid up, he's kind of being brutally honest. He's not wrong, but why say it at all?

 

He's either stirring the pot, senile, or showing some tough love. I don't think he SHOULD say this stuff, mind you, but I don't know that it's wrong.

 

In many other cities he could say this, but not New York. You can't use the 4th pick on a prospect that the fans are already skeptical of, and then they see the summer league play of Mudiay, Hezonja, and some others, and then publicly doubt your own pick. Even if you don't think he can play good enough D, keep it to yourself. Do not comare him to Shawn Bradley, ever. What other GM's out there are picking apart their OWN lottery pick months after picking him, before a real game has yet to be played? None. It's not in the job description.

You want to criticize the Knicks, stay retired and tweet, get a radio show, contribute to a newspaper. Don't take the job for a ridiculous amount of money, and criticize your own moves, lol, it's insanity. This is like Mitch coming out and saying that he doesn't think Russell will ever be strong or fast enough to play defense at PG in the NBA, and then comparing him to Darius Morris. Not that Bradley was that bad, but that's the sort of thing Knicks fans will hear with this comparison, horribly negative picture.

 

I find it odd that Porzingis who has a fluid game, nimble and a nice touch is being compared to the gawky Shawn Bradley. I've seen the latter play. Yes, it is a critique for his pick to work on or he is just tweaking the Knick fan base. Porzingis does have a Gasol type frame but he possesses a better outside shot. Smarts and a refined back to the basket game? That remains to be seen. In the long run, Gasol is probably the better defender.

 

This is just beautiful. Might be one of the first times I've heard Stephen A and Skip agree so wholeheartedly, too. Hilarious stuff.

It is good to see New York sucking so much and Phil striking out. I hated that he went there. I did however think that he had a chance to do much better than this. He's flat out failing and looking foolish.

 

Even though Bradley was no scrub... a career backup? That's not what NY wants to hear about their new #4 pick and future building block!

 

That he is... The Bradley comparison though is a bit off. He was a gawky, awkward player. Bradley was not completely horrible mind you but Porzingis from what I saw has a much better game. The latter looks to be more nimble to make up for his physical shortcomings for now. Yes, the additional weight would keep him from being mowed over but could also be a detriment too.

 

Good point. You can't ever believe anything Phil says in the press is 100% genuinely his thoughts without an ulterior motive.

 

True, but still a dumb thing to say to the NY media that has already turned on you.

 

Exactly. I think we all know Phil enough to know he said this as motivation for the rookie. What my rant was about, was this isn't LA or Chicago, this sort of thing I don't think goes over as well with those NY fans.