Can Melo fit the triangle offense?

First and foremost has to be winning over the Knicks' offensively gifted forward Carmelo Anthony and maximizing his talents as the centerpiece of the franchise. Jackson called Anthony "maybe the best individual isolation player in the game" and reiterated that Anthony is a part of the future plans in New York, stating that "there are a number of things I see Carmelo doing as he moves forward, and ... as great a player as he is, still has another level he can go to."

That other level Jackson is referring to is the leap that superstars like Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant made when they embraced the principles and philosophies of the triangle offense. Here is a look at how Anthony could take the same leap.

Will the Knicks even run the triangle?

If there's one thing we can be sure about, it's that the triangle is coming to Madison Square Garden. Jackson explicitly talked about it recently in connection with other possible management opportunities, and his comments in his news conference seem to intimate that he is leaning in that direction. ("I believe in system basketball," he said.)

To get a better sense of how Anthony could fit in the triangle offense, I spoke to a former player and a former assistant coach, both of whom have extensive experience with the triangle, as well as a current assistant coach who has scouted and made game plans against the triangle.

Based on their comments, it appears the triangle could cure Anthony of his ball-stopping habits.

Keys to system success

The most important trait a player can have in the triangle is the ability to read the defense, as that will dictate much of the motion and action that will commence. As the former player told me, "The guys who struggled with the triangle were the ones who could not make the reads."

The triangle demands a lot of motion and having the ball move from side to side, with proper spacing always emphasized. Tex Winter, architect of the triangle and a longtime Jackson assistant, emphasized 15 to 18 feet of space between players and floor balance, which means that if the defense decides to double or trap the ball, the ensuing rotation will force the recovering defender to cover a significant amount of ground. If Anthony is surrounded by good shooters, this will afford him a ton of space to operate in isolation or an easy outlet to an open teammate. Here's an example:

In the screen shot below, Jordan Farmar swings the ball to Lamar Odom on the wing while Bryant sets up at the pinch post on the left elbow. Meanwhile, Shannon Brown cuts down the middle of the lane, drawing defensive attention. Because the triangle dictates that all four off-ball players are scoring threats, the defense has to at least give token attention to this cut.

As Brown curls around the Pau Gasol screen, he pulls his man with him while momentarily occupying Kevin Love's attention. Farmar then feeds Bryant, who has the whole left side of the floor to operate. Making Love's help defense task even more difficult is the fact that his man on defense is Odom, who is parked at the 3-point line, waiting for the kickout pass should Love commit. Notice the amount of ground the defense would have to cover.

As Bryant goes into his move in the above screen shot, the Minnesota defenders all have to make decisions on whether to help. Bryant has to read the help and assess his options: kick back to Farmar at the top for an open 3; pass to Odom on the wing for the 3; swing it to Gasol on the dump-off should Al Jefferson come over to help; or pass it to Brown in the weakside corner (with Gasol screening off) for the corner 3.

For a player with Anthony's gifts, it's easy to see how he could thrive from such a set -- if he has the right personnel around him.

The former player noted that for Anthony's teammates, the best thing the triangle will afford them is certainty of shot selection. "You know where your shots are coming from, which allows you to work on taking those shots in practice, giving familiarity and comfort with your attempts."

Offensive versatility

Another advantage of the triangle is the ability to get different types of plays out of it. The former coach pointed out a refrain often echoed by triangle supporters: "What do they call the offense in San Antonio and Miami?" he asked. "The only reason people are intimidated by the triangle is because it has a name; the worst thing to ever happen was they named it."

In reality, the triangle can allow for any type of play, including the pick-and-roll, which has swept the league by storm.

"The general principle of the triangle is it is a foundation of play, so you can run it in any situation, including out of transition," the former coach said.

In the play below, the Lakers start with their "center opposite" action and turn it into a high screen-and-roll. Derek Fisher hits Bryant at the top, who swings to Ron Artest on the wing while Fisher follows the ball by cutting to the far corner.

Once the ball is swung, Gasol cuts from the weak side to the low block on the strong side over an Andrew Bynum screen. (Note that this could also be a post-up play, and the Knicks could put Anthony in Gasol's role to get him a post-up off a cut from the weak side.)

Artest swings back to Bryant, then goes down to set a double screen on the lane line for Fisher, who starts to cut baseline. Meanwhile, Bryant is now in a pick-and-roll with Bynum in the middle of the floor.

As Bryant comes off the screen, he has lots of options: He can pull up for the open shot in the space afforded to him by the sagging big defender; he can hit Bynum on the roll; he can wait for Bynum to roll then seal his smaller defender on the switch; or he can hit Fisher, who has curled around the double screen and is coming into space where he can hit the open jumper, make a touch pass to Bynum or swing back to Bryant on the wing and continue to run the triangle.

Again, the important thing to note is that a world of opportunity will be available to Anthony in this system, and he will have plenty of touches and different situations from which to get his shots.

Obstacles

As I stated in my Jackson-to-Knicks primer, the co-sign of some of the greatest Hall of Famers (not to mention Jackson's 11 pieces of jewelry) should do all the selling to Anthony about the offense. I asked the current coach if there was any way that Anthony could reject or not feel comfortable in the triangle, and he didn't think so, stating that Anthony is already running a lot of motion-type actions in New York under Mike Woodson, so much of this will not be a huge departure from what he's doing now.

That doesn't mean there still aren't potential obstacles.

"You can never take away all the options out of the triangle, but teams will fight to take away something," the former player said. "It might be to deny the pinch-post pass or deny the guard-to-guard lag pass at the top."

Sure, there are counters to every type of pressure applied, but if Anthony does not get help, the Knicks' offense could get stymied.

The former coach took a different approach when I asked him about potential obstacles, saying he didn't think the offense would be an issue at all. Rather, the Knicks will need to worry about tightening a bottom-five defense that is allowing more than 109 points per 100 possessions.

"Look at all the teams Phil had in Chicago, and they all share something in common: They defended," the former coach said.

Starting with the first championship team in Chicago, the Bulls never ranked lower than seventh in the league defensively, including the two nonchampionship years splitting the three-peats. The Lakers teams had more outliers, most notably the 2001 title team that allowed 104.8 points per 100 possessions, which ranked 21st in the league, but for the most part, they were a good defensive team as well.

It's clear that Jackson has his work cut out for him, but selling Anthony on the triangle should be as easy as that introductory news conference.