by Randy Hill

Comment

Through his first 11 games as strategic mastermind of the New York Knicks, D'Antoni and his seven-seconds-or-less calculations have cobbled six victories. The Knicks — who had been shell-shocked into abject misery during the terrifying reign of the Isiah Thomas — currently lead the league in scoring while providing evidence that the doomed climate inside Madison Square Garden has been eradicated.

Under Mike D'Antoni, the Knicks are fun to watch again. (Ned Dishman / Getty Images)

Rooting for D'Antoni and his unconventional (by NBA standards) system is not unlike wishing that Kim Kardashian had been a more fluid stepper than she turned out to be on "Dancing With the Stars."

Even in a venue that carved some of its reputation while fans cheered the defensive efforts of Walt Frazier and his cronies, D'Antoni's presence has brought a certain sense of relief.

Basketball sickos like me will watch anything (within reason) related to hoops. But a nation defined by its sports-attention deficit doesn't seem interested in basketball that lacks a certain freewheeling component. The San Antonio Spurs and Detroit Pistons have demonstrated that triumph achieved through stingy defense does little to fire the imaginations of casual hoop fans who live in other cities.

Last year's NBA Finals ratings rally did feature the defensive-oriented Boston Celtics, but that particular interest meter was driven by the renewal of their holy war with the Los Angeles Lakers.

So, in a copycat world, D'Antoni's commitment to shock-and-awe basketball would seem perfect for generating increased NBA awareness. Unfortunately, circumstance and a stubborn reluctance to compromise have inspired basketball watchdogs to declare such run-and-shoot schematics incapable of producing a championship.

And while I would stand up and applaud any NBA coach who defied convention and actually attacked another team defensively, it's almost silly to dismiss D'Antoni's failure to win it all in Phoenix as an indictment of his system.

While we've been conditioned to chant about defense winning championships, we may have missed the lesson on how defensive efficiency may be more important than total points allowed. During his last couple of seasons coaching the Suns, D'Antoni's teams were reasonably sound (about middle of the pack) in points allowed per possession, which — in his increased-tempo world — is almost all you can ask.

I wrote almost, because despite suiting up such defensive softies as Steve Nash, Leandro Barbosa and Amare Stoudemire, D'Antoni could have mixed in more aggressive, trapping reactions to ball screens, baseline drives and isolations, making the 24-second clock became an ally. This would have invited — or at least sustained — a brisk pace without wrecking that all-important defensive efficiency number.

But rather than make all of their players responsible at both ends of the floor, almost every NBA coach — having a smaller paycheck and less job security — are content to pile the defensive chores on modestly paid players and adhere to the usual philosophies.

Anyway, choosing to keep such guarding pressure on Raja Bell and Shawn Marion doesn't exactly underscore why D'Antoni came up short of the promised land while working in Phoenix. There were mitigating factors.

Four years ago, the Suns' demise was greatly abetted by Joe Johnson's broken eye socket.

A year later, it was Stoudemire on the season-long mend. Amare and Boris Diaw teamed up for that controversial suspension in the Spurs series two years ago, and last season was accompanied by Marion's inability to embrace his role and the beginning of the Shaq-periment.

Instead of stacking these items as excuses, I prefer to enter them into evidence as proof that the D'Antoni system — with a break or two — was on the cusp of something major. And the copycats would have fallen into lock step, inviting casual viewers (in theory) to ratchet up the interest in David Stern's league.

But despite lots of points and many victories, things became a bit buggy in that desert Camelot. For openers, new owner Robert Sarver took over and promptly low-balled Joe Johnson on an extension offer. With Jerry Colangelo out of decision-making range, son Bryan soon hustled his executive-of-the-year hardware to Toronto. Sarver pal Steve Kerr wasn't quite ready to assume Bryan's GM role, so D'Antoni was obliged to wear an additional hat until Kerr retired from TV.

Here's a clue: guys who are busy coaching teams into the playoffs really don't make good personnel directors.

Eventually, Marion whined his way out of Phoenix and new GM Kerr — with an alleged blessing from the inside-power-seeking D'Antoni — pulled off the O'Neal deal.

Now D'Antoni works in New York while Terry Porter has had a nice opening to his power-ball tactics in Phoenix. A look at the numbers suggests that not much has changed. The Suns currently are sixth in scoring, 18th in points allowed, first in field-goal accuracy and 16th in field-goal percentage defense.

However, the means by which they arrive at these stats — going inside, inside-out on offense and attempting to eliminate uncontested layups by Rodney Stuckey on defense — has a definite Porter imprint.

The Suns should have enough talent, experience and — finally — depth to secure a nice playoff seed ... if their commitment to running a lot of the offense through Shaq is not sabotaged by his inability to stay healthy. It should be noted that the previously short bench in Phoenix may have been a function of D'Antoni's refusal to trust anyone outside the usual rotation.

Back in New York, the sharpies are wondering if the Knicks can sustain their current pace.

It's doubtful, because D'Antoni simply lacks the firepower he worked with in Phoenix.

Success of his system — as it exists in New York — also is made a bit trickier by a lack of overall team speed. While it's obvious that Nash and Bell weren't exactly the league's swiftest backcourt, the Suns were a collective blur elsewhere. Marion's rebounding skill allowed D'Antoni to play him at power forward while Stoudemire ran away from opposing centers.

Phoenix also had Barbosa, one of the league's fastest players, to goose the pace of the game as sixth man.

The greatest difference is at point guard, where Chris Duhon won't be mistaken for Nash with the ball in his hands.

But D'Antoni's Knicks may be entertaining enough to remain in honeymoon mode for a good portion of this season. After this time frame expires, Mike will need talent upgrades that provide more shooters and finishers.

At least he (and Thomas) won't be making those decisions.