ANALYSIS : Knicks Reconsider Their Course After Losing to Orlando

In one sense, Stu Jackson’s record is deceptive. Yes, it is 1-2, but think about it. So far, the Knicks have lost only to the world champion Pistons and Magic. And Magic has beaten a lot of teams.

Unfortunately for Jackson, the Knicks lost to the wrong Magic -- not Johnson, but Orlando. The working theory before the Knicks’ acutely embarrassing 118-110 loss Monday night was that the scheduling gods had been nice to the Knicks. After the Detroit Pistons, their next seven games had them playing three expansion teams, three non-playoffs teams, and the lowest Western Conference qualifier from last season. For Jackson, there were enticing possibilities -- 7-1, 6-2. And the worst seemed to be 5-3.

After Monday night’s loss, however, the working theory of a kind scheduling god was not applicable. Instead, the working theory, popularized in other parts of the country, was the “gutless pig theory.” That is a rather crude way of saying a team has no heart, and Jackson, in his own way, was saying that about the Knicks Monday night.

“The Orlando Magic simply wanted the game from an emotional standpoint a little more than we did,” Jackson said, and went on to criticize his team’s effort. “They’re not battling on the backboards. This is a very disheartening loss for us.”

Still, despite the loss, Knicks fans should be encouraged about Jackson’s head coaching future because he is a coach who looks at the future and cowers, which is a sign of greatness. And he was like that before the game Monday night. The best NBA coaches fear failure, fear the opposition, fear expectations and fear fear. It is a healthy way to feel. When a head coach is scared of everyone, he takes no one for granted. The only trick is to convey that fear to the players, and have them listen. Jackson told them the Magic would play hard. The Knicks apparently didn’t listen.

But now, maybe they will. And the schedule still is polite. The Knicks still have games against the New Jersey Nets, Los Angeles Clippers, Sacramento Kings and Minnesota Timberwolves.

Jackson’s only problem right now is that he can’t teach heart. But the loss may work in his favor. One way to gain credibility with the players is to be successful. Despite their outward enthusiasm for Jackson, they had to wonder if he was ready for the big time. He had never coached before. Would a rookie system work in the NBA?

A few victories would give reason to believe in Jackson. But now the players know that Jackson was right about one thing. Before the game, he said the Magic was capable of kicking the Knicks’ collective butt. And the Magic did. So perhaps the other way to gain credibility is to predict doom accurately.

“I know this,” Jackson said, “there are no ‘gimmes’ in this league. In the beginning, everybody is tough. It’s in the middle of the year when they start losing that they get down. That doesn’t happen at the beginning of the year. I know the public will never buy this, but the schedule looks a lot better on paper than it is.”

Whether the public buys it or not is insignificant. The important thing was for the players to buy it, and they didn’t. Maybe they will now.

But besides heart, Jackson also may question the player’s mental capabilities. Their short-term memories do not seem to be in full working order. It was only last season when they visited Charlotte for the first time. They lost. And later, they also lost in Miami. They even lost at home against the Hornets. Expansion teams lack talent, but they do try hard. They often refuse to give up. That’s called heart.

“We’ve been through this,” Jackson said. “Evidently we didn’t learn our lesson.”

Jackson was clearly disgusted by the lost opportunity. The Boston Celtics have won their first two games and are intent on recapturing the division title. And one thing is certain. If Larry Bird & Co. loses to Magic, it won’t be the one in Orlando.

Beating the Magic requires no hocus-pocus. It merely requires consistent effort, which, coincidentally, is also a trait of champions. If the Knicks are not as successful as they were last season, they eventually may question Jackson’s system. After Monday night, however, it would be appropriate for them to question themselves.