David Fizdale is the right man for the job, but is New York ready?

The New York Knicks may have finally done something right by hiring David Fizdale as their next head coach.

David Fizdale is the right man for the New York Knicks head coaching job. I adamantly and selfishly wanted to see Mark Jackson take over the team that he grew up cheering and later played for. Yet I must admit, for this rebuild, Fizdale is the perfect man for the job. He’s a true player’s coach with a fine understanding of how to motivate and bring out the best in his players.

Fizdale sports a career 50-51 record during his time as head coach of the Memphis Grizzlies. As an assistant with the Miami Heat, he gained a championship pedigree which allows him to demand the best from his players without being too arrogant about it like previous GMs the Knicks have had.

Miami head coach Eric Spoelstra even endorsed Fizdale stating, “I just, I hope he goes West (laughs). That’s the kind of respect I have for him. I don’t want him going anywhere in the East.”

Fizdale is well-respected among coaching circles and the Knicks did themselves a favor by making sure to lock him up for the next four years.

Buyer Beware

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In my mind, there is no label or stigma over David Fizdale. My belief is that the issue in Memphis so referenced by every beat writer or average Joe with a keyboard was wildly overblown.

Marc Gasol is an incredible talent. What I believe happened was a superstar player was asked to be more and he didn’t respond well to it. From that point on, tension grew. It showed the mental weakness that has currently befallen the Grizzlies and why they are willing to use their lottery pick in this year’s draft on a future center if given the chance.

Fizdale, being a young coach, did everything he could to reach each player. Gasol was no longer receptive or willing to bend to the new coach, thus leading to the rift.

What’s Next?

The New York Knicks have done a great job by finding a new coach with enough experience, energy, and youth to do things his way and correctly. Jeff Hornacek was an excellent coach but Phil Jackson had undermined his ability so badly that Jeff’s voice had gone stale.

Now with a new coach comes a new group of players. The Knicks should bring as much competition to camp as possible, allowing players to truly compete for the opportunity to be great. They need to avoid the temptation of giving away the farm for one player and possibly trade a few of their own players away for some late first-round or second-round selections.

If the opportunity presents itself to move up in the draft for a reasonable price, the Knicks should do it with the future in mind. If the chance to trade for Kawhi Leonard comes at a reasonable price they should do so as well. Under no circumstance should they give away a treasure trove for a player who is already disgruntled, especially when they are in no way one player away from a championship.

Next: 2018 NBA Draft: New York Knicks Mock Draft

Every player acquired this year should be considered a building block for the 2019-2020 season when they can actually make a push. All of this means not giving away this year’s or next year’s first-round picks, but 2020 and 2022 should be a consideration.

All and all, this is an excellent way to start May for the New York Knicks. Hopefully, they will continue to build on it.

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