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New York Knicks Unveil Faster Pace on Offense

By Nick Ziegler

Jan 31, 2016; Dallas, TX, USA; Phoenix Suns head coach Jeff Hornacek yells to this team during the first half of the game between the Dallas Mavericks and the Suns at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 31, 2016; Dallas, TX, USA; Phoenix Suns head coach Jeff Hornacek yells to this team during the first half of the game between the Dallas Mavericks and the Suns at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports /
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One of the complaints about the New York Knicks last season was their triangle offense. With Jeff Hornacek as the new coach, we are going to see a faster pace.

The triangle offense was heavily criticized in New York last season, as the New York Knicks once again failed to make the playoffs. The methodical pace of the triangle resulted in a lot of poor possessions for the Knicks, who rarely pushed the pace. This season, the Knicks are already working on having a faster-paced offense.

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“It’s just easier buckets,’’ Hornacek said to Marc Berman of the New York Post. “If you have to grind it out all the time … it’s great if you can do that, and we want to be a team that can do that at the end of games, execute plays. But if you get six easy buckets pushing the ball, it’s a big advantage.’’

Coming from Phoenix, Hornacek certainly knows about running an up-tempo offense. For years now, the Suns have been one of the fastest offenses in the league. That includes when Hornacek coached there.

“It’s still reads, you pass it here,’’ Hornacek said to Berman. “Talking to our guys about it, they like that. If you’re a talented guy and like basketball, you’d like to have those options. You don’t want to be a robot. I think maybe the previous teams were trying to learn it, run it and trying to do it right. Phil always stressed to me you got to let them be creative.”

Not being set in the triangle offense will allow more freedom for the Knicks on the court. Upgrades to the backcourt have made the Knicks a much quicker team. Both Derrick Rose and Brandon Jennings are able to get the ball up the court quickly. Compared to Jose Calderon last season, the Knicks will have much better point guards.

Easy baskets in transition after defensive stops will help the Knicks score more this season. Finding easy points was a difficult thing for the Knicks, who seemed incapable of scoring in the halfcourt at times last season.

Hornacek also appears to have the blessing of Phil Jackson to do what he pleases on offense. After seeing the triangle fail with Derek Fisher and Kurt Rambis, Jackson appears to be letting Hornacek control the offense.

New York Knicks
New York Knicks /

“Phil’s given us the ability to run it any way we want,’’ Hornacek said to Berman. “How to set it up — a good working way to run it with different options. It should be pretty easy.’’

Hornacek has also received support from his offense from Carmelo Anthony. Last season, Anthony was pretty outspoken about the struggles of the triangle, and he wanted a faster-paced offense this season.

“I just want Jeff to be comfortable and confident in what he wants to run, what he wants to accomplish, as well as communicating with Phil,’’ Anthony said to Berman. “That’s what Phil wanted, wanted him to communicate and talk to him and keep him involved in what’s going on. “Phil is here in every practice. He hasn’t been involved as far as talking. He’s just been letting Jeff do his thing. We’re going to buy into that.”

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While the new offense should help the Knicks score, the improved roster will also help that. Finally, having talented guards like Jennings and Rose will help Hornacek’s offense succeed this season.

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