There’s no way New York Knicks president Phil Jackson went on MSG Network Thursday night and copped to shopping Kristaps Porzingis because he has to do what’s best for “the club.”
Except that he did.
Here’s the video via SI.com’s Kenny Ducey:
Here are Phil's full comments regarding the Porzingis trade rumors. Doesn't sound too good. pic.twitter.com/aEVIlT0vtB
— Kenny Ducey (@KennyDucey) June 22, 2017
And here’s the money quote courtesy of ESPN.com’s Ian Begley:
Phil Jackson on Kristaps: "As much as we love this guy, we have to do what's best for the club."
— Ian Begley (@IanBegley) June 22, 2017
Why yes, Phil Jackson is terrible at his job, thank you for asking.
Some will attribute this to due diligence, when it’s not that. You don’t need to gauge the value on your best player when he’s 21 years old, under team control for at least the next six years and the only reason your franchise has any hope at all. You keep that player. You build around that player.
This is very clearly Jackson holding a grudge against Porzingis because he skipped his exit interview in a show of protest against the Knicks’ shitty ways. And that’s despicable. Reports are now surfacing like wild fire, and it seems there’s a legitimate chance New York could trade the sole building block on the roster for a collection of unknown draft picks.
Joel Embiid is even not-so-subtly recruiting young Kristaps:
We don't care about Exit meetings in Philly… you're welcome to join
— Joel Embiid (@JoelEmbiid) June 22, 2017
Consider this your daily reminder that the Knicks are trash, and that they will forever be trash if they pull the plug on a budding superstar 29 other teams would be smart enough to fawn over.