HAIR'S LESS TO SAY
Grizzly Fisher ready to let Knicks’ play do talking
More beard. Less talk. More wins. Those are Derek Fisher’s three new principles as he started his second Knicks training camp Tuesday at West Point’s Christl Arena.
Fisher, who rarely owned up to a mistake during a disastrous inaugural season, admitted he was too chatty last season, overloading his club with information.
As much as Phil Jackson has vowed to be more participatory in coaching this season, Day 1 saw the Zen Master sitting silently on the sidelines, just like last year’s training camp at Army.
“No,’’ Fisher said when asked by The Post if Jackson was more talkative during practice. “He was here. No, he doesn’t coach the team. I coach the team. So he wasn’t involved in that way.’’
It was a remark Fisher said repeatedly last season whenever he was asked about Jackson’s input. Fisher now sports an intimidating, lumberjack beard. He grew playoff beards of considerable length during his Lakers days, but decided to start the 201516 campaign with a grizzly new look. Any measure to change the face of last season’s 1765 nightmare.
Fisher said he also plans on fewer sermons. The Post quoted an Oklahoma City source after Fisher was hired, expressing concern that his many speeches as a player could turn off the team if he continued that as coach.
“I think every coach in every sport is trying to find a way to structure effective and efficient practices and not have guys feeling like they’re being overtaught,’’ Fisher said Tuesday. “Coaches are doing more talking than players are doing work. We’re creating an environment where guys are working hard, there’s passion for what we’re doing. That means we can’t talk as much. That starts with me, so I think the players will appreciate that quite a bit.’’
Carmelo Anthony noticed a more narrowed and lessloquacious Fisher to open camp.
“I thought the setup was perfect,’’ Anthony said. “They did talking early for a couple of minutes, explained the drills and went out and got after it. It wasn’t that much talk. More execution and less talk. ... I think now he came in with a plan and he’s executing that plan. You can tell he has a plan coming into this training camp. Last year was so much going on around training camp.’’
For his part, Fisher said he feels more sure of himself one year later.
“There’s no way to know everything no matter how long you’ve been doing it,’’ Fisher said. “But, for sure, your first time around, there’s a lot you don’t understand and have to learn through experience and trial and error, success and failure. I feel more confident and comfortable because I’ve done this quite a few times since a year ago. But that means nothing really.’’
Neither does the notion Jackson, the NBA’s most decorated coach with 11 championship rings, will assist him more this season. Fisher said the team’s record is on his ledger, not Jackson’s.
“I’m me, he’s him,’’ Fisher said. “I don’t get caught up in how much, not enough [input]. It’s my job. I’m the coach of the team. How we do will fall on my shoulders. It doesn’t matter the percentages of time we meet. It’s on me. I’m comfortable with that. I wouldn’t have accepted the job if I wasn’t comfortable with it.’’
Anthony alluded to last season’s chaos, mentioning the high number of different starting lineups Fisher employed. Fisher said Tuesday the lineup is “open in a lot of ways’’ because of the plethora of big men that needs sorting out, including rookie Kristaps Porzingis.
Figure on point guard Jose Calderon, Anthony and center Robin Lopez as the three definites. However, Fisher doesn’t expect any attitude, chemistry or slowtolearnthetriangle issues in his second year.
“We have a lot of new players who chose to be here and we chose to be here,’’ Fisher said. “That cuts the learning curve down right away. Everyone’s on the same page from the beginning.’’
And Fisher, who won five titles with the Lakers as a player, claims it’s easy to shake off 1765.
“I’ve only come off five successful seasons,’’ Fisher said. “Whether you’re 17 wins or 67 wins, if you don’t win the championship, you’re starting over.’’