The Demise of the Triangle Offense

As a Cavs fan, and subsequently a small-market fan, I was obviously a bit perturbed that Artest spurned the Cavs for LA when, according to Brian Windhorst, both teams were offering the same amount of MONEY. Then, as usual, I got to eating McNuggets, drinking Scotch and texting NBA with my buddy, and I realized that while it may not have been fair for the Cavs, for whom Artest would have been the perfect fit, it doesn't necessarily create a utopia for LA LA Land either. Phil Jackson ran the triangle less than ever in his coaching career with the Lake Show this year, typically in favor of cow-towing to Kobe's ego and the pick n roll.  It worked because everybody was willing to buy into doing that when Kobe desired. The only reason that environment existed on that team, though, was because everybody had been playing with Kobe for more than a year at that point. Not to mention, Phil was able to fall back on the Triangle to make sure things didn't fall apart when Kobe was out of the game ... (link)