J.R. Smith: Triangle Offense Was “Too Much Thinking”
Inserting the triangle offense with the New York Knicks couldn’t have been more difficult for Phil Jackson and Derek Fisher given the personnel. J.R. Smith, one of the Knicks’ key offensive players for the last several years, repeatedly expressed his discomfort with the offense. This came as no surprise since the principles of the triangle don’t cater to Smith’s game whatsoever.
Smith was of course traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers along with Iman Shumpert this week. Since he’s now liberated from the triangle he shared more freely his thoughts on having to figure out the offense, via Kevin Kernan of the New York Post:
Figuring out the triangle is no longer his problem and J.R. Smith couldn’t be happier.
“It’s almost too much thinking,’’ Smith told The Post Wednesday night before the slumping, LeBron James-less Cavaliers were rocked by the Rockets, 105-93, Smith’s first game as a Cavalier. He missed all five shots he took. …
“Everybody in the building was pretty much walking on eggshells so it was kind of hard to prosper in that way, especially when you are not accustomed to it,’’ Smith said. “But eventually I’m sure they’ll get it right.’’
Despite Smith even saying at one point that he felt the Knicks had the best shooting guard core in the league, they’ll probably have a better chance of “getting it right” assuming the Knicks have now settled on Tim Hardaway Jr. at the position. The idea of the triangle is to be able to think the game, and it’s also about positioning. When you think about Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant, the two shooting guards who were able to flourish in the triangle, it was their particular ability to post up and be threats in those pinch post areas that made the system elite. Not to say Hardaway Jr. will form into that mold, but his skill ceiling is still pretty high.
J.R. Smith and the triangle offense would never be a healthy marriage. For the Cavaliers, where the offense is more spread and free flowing, Smith should be glad to not have to do much thinking at all. Especially when LeBron James returns.
And we do know Smith’s motto.
