Phil Jackson recently went on record to say that the New York Knicks will be a “competitive team” next season, referencing both their draft picks and free agent acquisitions. He’s being mocked and dismissed as an ‘old fogey’ who’s let the game pass him by, as has been the case throughout his brief tenure with the Knicks.

Despite the continuous hate, Jackson has done about as well this offseason as any executive given the constraints of his franchise, and has put the Knicks in position to return to the playoffs in 2015/16.

Drafting Kristaps Porzingis was not the long-term gamble everyone (thanks to Stephen A. Smith) considers it. This has been discussed before, the main takeaway being that Porzingis was an effective player in the world’s second-best basketball league, and thus clearly talented enough to make an impact right away in the NBA. Porzingis will space the floor very well for Carmelo Anthony, something he hasn’t seen in a power forward since Steve Novak was on the team during their 54-win season.

However, the best move Jackson made this offseason was trading Tim Hardaway Jr. for the rights to draft Jerian Grant. Impressively, Grant led Notre Dame this year in both points per game and assists per game – and the team had the second-best Offensive Rating in the NCAA. This speaks volumes for Grant’s versatility and ability to contribute right away for the Knicks.

Jackson then signed a healthy crop of free agents in Robin Lopez, Kyle O’Quinn, Arron Afflalo and Derrick Williams. Lopez is the key pickup here, as his NBA-proven defensive chops should help cover for Porzingis on that end. O’Quinn projects to be a great glue guy for this team. Afflalo and Williams are nothing to write home about, but they provide some veteran leadership and athleticism, respectively.

The key thing to remember when bringing up the Knicks’ horrible 2014-15 record as an argument against Jackson’s claim is that by and large, he didn’t build that team. Jackson inherited a poor situation, and has reconstructed over half the roster in his brief time at the helm. The only real common denominators between this year’s Knicks and last year’s should be HC Derek Fisher and Anthony (assuming he doesn’t get traded). Even then, Anthony played just 40 games last season.

It’s not unreasonable to assume that Anthony will come back healthy, and come back the top-tier player we’ve all forgotten he is. If that happens, he’s got a completely new team to play with, a team with the talent to win in a number of different ways. Look for the Knicks to challenge for the high-40s in wins, get better as the season goes on and make some noise in the playoffs.

Casey Sherman is the Toronto Raptors Beat Writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @shermham