Phil Jackson endorses 4-point shot

Antoine Walker, asked why he shoots so many 3-pointers, famously responded: “because there are no 4s.”

Maybe Walker just played in the wrong era.

At least if Phil Jackson has his way.

Harvey Araton of The New York Times on Jackson:

Now, he said, he would even endorse a 4-point shot being implemented a few feet behind the 3-point line.

It’s rather shocking Jackson – the Knicks president who’s trying to install the old-fashioned triangle offense he ran with the Bulls and Lakers – endorse such a 4-pointer. He’s not the first to suggest it, but it seems to go against his basketball values (though maybe we can question exactly how firm those are).

A 4-pointer seems too radical, but 3-pointers must have also seemed that way when first implemented. In time, it would become a natural part of the game.

Of course, it’s nowhere near becoming part of the rulebook. But the first step is the game’s leaders, like Jackson, accepting the idea – and it seems we’ve crossed that threshold.