New York Knicks president Phil Jackson has criticised the lack of discipline and structure in NBA offenses in the modern game, and singled out LeBron James.
Jackson made it abundantly clear that he isn’t impressed with the way that offense is run in the NBA nowadays, and he used James as the prime example of what the problem is.
Speaking in an interview with Bleacher Report from May which was published on Monday, the Knicks president insisted that he isn’t happy with the individualistic way the game is being played now and wants to see more team basketball.
The Knicks will likely adopt such a style next season as they look to bounce back from a disastrous season last year, with Carmelo Anthony likely to have help around him moving forward as they continue to persist with the triangle offense.
“When I watch some of these playoff games, and I look at what’s being run out there, as what people call an offense, it’s really quite remarkable to see how far our game has fallen from a team game. Four guys stand around watching one guy dribble a basketball,” Jackson said.
“I watch LeBron James, for example. He might [travel] every other time he catches the basketball if he’s off the ball. He catches the ball, moves both his feet. You see it happen all the time. There’s no structure, there’s no discipline, there’s no ‘How do we play this game’ type of attitude. And it goes all the way through the game. To the point where now guys don’t screen — they push guys off with their hands.”
Jackson added that he believes some of the beauty of the game has been taken away with the emphasis on individual star power, but insists that the issue is bigger than just being a basketball problem as it relates to society too.
The former Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers coach has won 13 titles, 11 as a coach, but made it clear that he was just using James as an example and that the problem is evident around the league with teams neglecting structured offenses in favour of constant pick-and-roll plays.
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