The Knicks didn't win on the court much last season, but team president Phil Jackson thinks everybody won when the team sent Iman Shumpert and J.R. Smith to the Cavs in Feburary.
“J.R. had been exhibiting some delinquent behavior and had gotten into the habit of coming late to team meetings, or missing them altogether,” Jackson told ESPN. “Also, Shump and Tim [Hardaway Jr.] were regressing, so I decided to meet with them separately and try to find out what, if anything, was bothering them.”
Jackson didn't stop there. He said Smith didn't live up to the expectations of carrying the scoring load for New York's second unit.
"He’s a very sensitive guy, with his big doe eyes. He looked like he was going to tear up. But he finally responded that he was going through some issues with his gal.”
As for Shumpert, Jackson says he stopped progressing after an early-season injury.
“After he suffered a hip injury in Dallas, his game went rapidly downhill. Did he have any other issues to explain his decline? He said, ‘No. I don’t know what has gone wrong with my game.’ As with J.R., nothing got resolved.”
The pair were eventually dealt to Cleveland in a three-team trade that included Oklahoma City. The Knicks recieved very little in return--three non-guaranteed contracts and a 2019 second rounder.
"We made the trade to Cleveland because that was the best place to get J.R. and Shump playing ball the right way," Jackson said. "The money that comes back to our cap situation is the benefit of these trades. We need to get out from under our obligations of contracts."
Smith and Shumpert both contributed to a couple big games in the early part of the team's NBA Finals run. Smith improved his points per game (from 10.9 to 12.7) as well as his field goal and three-point percentages. Shumpert was a solid defensive force who played well against the Bulls in the second round when Smith was suspended.
Shumpert is staying in Cleveland after re-signing with the team. Smith is still a free agent.