Derek Fisher Said He Never Would Have Taken The Knicks Head Coaching Job If He Knew He Had To Run The Triangle Offense. Wait, What?

NYDN- If Derek Fisher knew he’d be forced to run the triangle, he would’ve never been the Knicks coach. He just never thought to ask. The 44-year-old made that claim to FS1 in an interview that will be aired Thursday, indicating that he didn’t have enough confidence or experience to question Phil Jackson. In the process, Fisher detonated the narrative – long pushed by the Knicks — that the Zen Master wasn’t pulling the strings from the front office.

“I wasn’t smart enough to ask the right questions going into taking and accepting the job,” Fisher told FS1. “What are you going to expect of me? Do I have to run the triangle? If I don’t want to run the triangle, is that going to be a problem for you? Those are things I wasn’t prepared to do coming straight from being a player. Steve Kerr was prepared to do that. Which is probably why he didn’t take the job in New York. He knew how to ask those questions coming from the place of experience that he’s been in Phoenix and just maybe just being out the game a little longer than I. So I put myself in a tough position to start.”

Asked by host Kristine Leahy if he wouldn’t have accepted the job if he had to run the triangle, Fisher answered, “Yes. Correct.”

Considering how fun and exciting this current young Knicks team is, hearing the names like Derek Fisher and Phil Jackson was like a nice splash of cold water acid to the face. The Ghosts of Knicksmas Past reminding us of how bad it was only a few years ago. Derek Fisher was fired only TWO YEARS AGO (and a few months, but still).

To be honest, I don’t even know who to blame here. On one hand you have Derek Fisher saying that he didn’t know he would have to run the triangle offense in New York despite Phil Jackson loving that system more than peyote. If you wanted your neck slit quick, just speak ill of the triangle or Tex Winters around Phil. I bet a nice hypotenuse gets the blood rushing to all the right spots for Big Chief Triangle. That dude built a career, a legacy, and multiple dynasties with that offense. To think he would allow any other offense to be installed for the team he was put in charge of running is lunacy, which is probably why future Hall of Fame coach Steve Kerr decided to win rings with the Warriors instead of fight a bunch of angry old assholes in New York.

I mean I honestly don’t know what Fisher and Jackson could have even talked about in their interview if they weren’t discussing what systems to run. Clearly Fisher wasn’t hired to be a great motivator.

(I am so mad video of this has been erased from the internet since Vine was killed)

And he clearly wasn’t brought in for his X’s and O’s.

Did they just make small talk about each others’ personal lives before reminiscing about the rings they won with the Lakers and the time Fisher ripped the Spurs’ guts out?

Then again, this is Derek Fisher and Phil Jackson we are talking about. One willfully started dating an ex-teammate’s estranged wife with that ex-teammate being the very sane Matt Barnes. And the other willfully gave Derek Fisher a five-year, $25 million contract to coach his team despite Fisher having no coaching experience and also happily signed Joakim Noah to a 4-year, $72 million contract. Oh yeah and this is the clown shoe that owns the team.

Bottom line is this story actually makes me happy as a Knicks fan because for the first time in years, I actually have some faith in the front office’s decision making and that they actually have a plan. I fully expect the bottom to fall out at any given moment because that’s what the Knicks do.