Knicks Notes: J.R. Smith, Phil Jackson, Anthony

The Knicks face a series of offseason questions ranging from which players they will keep to help fill out their bench to whether Mike Woodson will return as head coach. Let's head to Madison Square Garden to check in on the latest headlines and stories making noise in New York City.

  • The Knicks are hoping J.R. Smith doesn't opt out of his $2.5MM contract and returns to the team next season, reports Marc Berman of the New York Post. The former Nuggets sharpshooter is a strong fit for the Knicks because he's comfortable coming off the bench as the team's sixth man. Smith, 26, averaged 12.5 PPG during the regular season but struggled during the playoffs against the Heat where his 3PT% was just .179.
  • Berman says Knicks owner James Dolan is foolish for not taking the opportunity to call Phil Jackson to see if the legendary coach had any interest in leading the Knicks next season. While Jackson is still recovering from knee replacement surgery, nothing would have been lost by Dolan calling the former Knicks forward to see if he wanted to assume the reigns from Woodson. Berman fears that the Knicks will be no better than the Woodson's Hawks teams except with die-hard fans and sellout crowds.
  • The Knicks will have to build their roster around Carmelo Anthony if they have any hope of beating the Heat during the playoffs in seasons to come, writes Mike Lupica of the New York Daily News. It's not so much that Anthony is the savior to the team's struggles but rather that the team has invested so heavily in him with the players they traded and the contract he signed that it would be too early to give up on him. Lupica says the team will need to get creative to find additional talent to add to the team's roster heading into next season.
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