Baron Davis Rips Phil Jackson For Killing Knickstape

Baron Davis found the end to his New York Knicks career to be anything but zen.

Davis’ accomplished 13-year NBA tenure ended in Manhattan as part of the famed “Knickstape” era headlined by the efforts of Carmelo Anthony and Amar’e Stoudemire in the early portions of the last decade. Under the guidance of head coach Mike Woodson (and valuable complements such as Tyson Chandler and J.R. Smith), the Knicks reached the playoffs in three consecutive seasons and won 54 games in 2012-13.

The architects of those efforts, however, were eventually exorcised by Phil Jackson, a two-time champion on the floor with the Knicks who later won 11 rings between Chicago and Los Angeles as the supervisor of NBA legends like Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan, and Shaquille O’Neal.

Appearing as a guest on Anthony’s web series “7PM in Brooklyn,” Davis ripped Jackson for his meddling, which involved the dissolution of the beloved “Knickstape” group.

“The Knickstape (era) was a vibe,” Davis declared. “Phil Jackson killed that.”

After the Knicks missed the playoffs following that memorable 2012-13 campaign, Jackson joined the team as an executive in a widely-publicized move. He would last just three full seasons with the team, never finishing with more than 32 wins in that span.

Despite its initial hoopla, the Jackson era seemed doomed from the start: shortly after the Knicks wrapped up a 37-45 season in 2013-14 (the first of seven consecutive postseason no-shows), Jackson fired Woodson in favor of former Los Angeles protege Derek Fisher.

Davis endured an NBA career-ending injury during the Knicks’ playoff run in 2012, one that saw Woodson go 18-6 after taking over for Mike D’Antoni in the second half of the regular season. As an outsider, he knew the trouble that firing a beloved like Woodson would cause.

“You got to understand the dynamic, like where is the heart and soul of your team, where’s the personality, right? It’s not always like your leaders can lead quietly,” Davis explained. “The Knicks finally had the gall, and with Woody, you have a dynamic where Woody is like Joe Jackson. Like if you get mad, he might take off.”

At the time of Woodson’s departure, he was the only Knicks coach to leave with a winning record since Jeff Van Gundy’s time came in 2002 (since joined by current Knicks boss Tom Thibodeau). Fisher wound up lasting just one full season before he was fired in 2016 and his winning percentage of .294 is third-worst in Knicks history.

Jackson’s hands-on approach further alienated the Knicks that were left behind and his deteriorating relationship with Anthony only made things worse. Amidst further conflicts with Anthony and fellow franchise face Kristaps Porzingis, Jackson and the Knicks mutually agreed to part ways in 2017.

Davis derisively compared Jackson’s tenure to one of his front office predecessors, Glen Grunwald.

“His team, the whole team, is insane. It’s like that insane moment and energy, you know what I mean?” Davis said.”You just don’t want to disappoint Woody, but you don’t want to piss him off. But (Grunwald) allowed the team to be the team, and the way he put the team together, he stayed out together. It was just a team thing.”

It took the Knicks several signings and hires to fully rid themselves of the carnage Jackson left behind: one of Jackson’s final acts before he stepped down was the drafting of French washout Frank Ntilikina (chosen shortly before future All-Stars Donovan Mitchell and Bam Adebayo) while his veteran misfires included Courtney Lee and Joakim Noah.

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