Three strikes, you’re out.
Knicks president Phil Jackson has an 0-2 count on him as his club starts its third full season under the Zen Master’s faulty presidency Tuesday night at Cleveland’s Quicken Loans Arena.
After another major roster reconstruction and hiring a new, inventive coach in Jeff Hornacek, Jackson may have gotten it right this time.
On the flip side, Jackson, whose teams have posted humbling seasons of 17-65 and 32-50 on his watch, may have assembled a starting five that would have looked brilliant in 2010-11 and flops in 2016-17.
Six seasons ago, Derrick Rose was the league MVP, Joakim Noah was emerging as the league’s most active defensive big man and Carmelo Anthony was smack in his prime, carrying a reputation as the game’s most lethal late-game, clutch shot-maker.
Now, no one would be shocked if any member of the star trio goes down with a serious injury.
“Everything looks good now on paper,’’ Anthony said, “but it’s not until we get on the court and start putting things together and seeing who fits with who and how it fits in.”
“If they can stay healthy and Hornacek is able to implement his system and get up and down and take advantage of the 3-point line, I think we’ll see improvement,’’ NBA TV’s Grant Hill said. “Are they a playoff team, an upper-echelon team in the conference? I think you want to slow down on that. But I think they’ll see a drastic improvement from the last two years.”
The new Jackson 5 is rounded out by free-agent shooting guard Courtney Lee — a slight upgrade over Arron Afflalo — and Kristaps Porzingis, the best thing that happened to Jackson’s presidency. By falling to No. 4 in the 2015 draft lottery, Jackson tabbed the 7-foot-3 unicorn, who will become a perennial All-Star, perhaps as soon as his sophomore campaign.
For all the fan buzz about Jackson’s offseason haul, Anthony and Noah are leaving their primes, Porzingis isn’t close to his prime and Rose’s status is as unclear as some of J.R. Smith’s tattoos.
“He’s trying to get back to doing some of the things he used to do four, five years ago,’’ Hornacek said of Rose.
On Tuesday, the Knicks begin their 70th year — with the World Series beginning across the street in Cleveland — as Jackson watches his castoffs Smith and Iman Shumpert receive their championship rings with the Cavaliers. Jackson has 13 rings — two as a Knicks player, 11 as a coach — but still searches for his first playoff berth as team president, and it’s no lock.
Starting five
1. Will the Knicks stay away from the Hospital for Special Surgery?
Rose, Chicago’s biggest basketball star, is now trying to become the Knicks’ alpha, but the Bulls gave up on him for a reason. His three knee surgeries forced him to miss almost two full seasons, and Jackson is crossing his fingers the 28-year-old doesn’t break down again. Rose missed training camp last year with a broken orbital bone and missed 16 days of preseason this year to attend his civil sexual assault trial, in which he was cleared. His lack of preseason preparation could make him more of an injury candidate.
Brandon Jennings, Rose’s backup at point guard, looked like the same energizer as before Achilles tendon surgery, but orthopedists will tell you a rupture is the hardest injury from which to regain prior basketball form. He played 48 nondescript games last season, 41 the season before.
The injury bug already started with Noah, who hasn’t played a regular-season game since Jan. 15 after being shut down for shoulder surgery. Hamstring and ankle issues dogged his preseason, and he admitted he’s “a step slow” defensively from rust. Anthony had his usual amount of nagging injuries last season and probably has to log more than 72 games now that he’s got a full season under his belt following knee surgery to repair a torn patellar tendon. The Knicks were 0-10 in his absence.
2. Will Hornacek’s new offense and defense be effective?
Hornacek has received strong reviews for revitalizing the Knicks’ offense by marginalizing the triangle and playing a more up-tempo attack that averaged 108 points during the preseason. He talks of “an early offense’’ that has a Spurs feel — pass-heavy, lots of picks away from the ball. Jackson has left Hornacek alone as his new coach uses the triangle situationally.
The Zen Master could get more involved in helping Hornacek’s shaky defense after a woeful preseason (107 points allowed). Hornacek likes a pressure defense and to switch only occasionally on pick-and-rolls, but has Jerry Sloan’s philosophy that it’s often about a player’s instincts. The team has looked slow to react. Hornacek’s Suns teams stopped playing defense last season. In his final 10 games, Hornacek’s team was outscored an average 109.0-92.6. Hornacek’s Suns gave up 142 points to Sacramento on Jan. 2 and he was fired 29 days later.
3. Will Carmelo prove he’s a top-15 player?
Anthony threw a hissy fit when Slam Magazine voted him No. 15 in its top-50 player rankings, but he hasn’t made an All-NBA team for three straight seasons. Yes, Anthony has recorded his best seasons coming off the 2008 and 2012 Olympics, but he was younger then. Though he won a record third gold medal in Rio de Janeiro as the veteran team leader this summer, he looked old in the final three knockout games. He’s 32, no longer the same athlete, and his failures in the closing minutes of games the past three seasons may have taken a toll mentally. His clutch shooting stats — specifically, field-goal percentage in the final five minutes of games within three or five points — have been abysmal the past two years. The theory is with Rose breaking down the defense, Anthony will get better looks late in games.
4. How will the bench rotation work?
Hornacek never played his entire starting five together during the preseason because of injuries to Noah and Rose’s absences, and therefore didn’t get a clear look at his best bench combinations. The top four bench guys are expected to be Jennings, Justin Holiday as the backup shooting guard, Lance Thomas as backup small forward and Kyle O’Quinn as the first big off the bench. Hornacek said he would like to play 10 guys, so when the club goes traditional, add smooth rookie center Willy Hernangomez coming off a good preseason. The other European rookie, sharpshooter Mindaugas Kuzminskas, should be used when Hornacek wants to go small, switching either Anthony or Thomas to the 4.
5. Is this Phil’s final season in New York?
Jackson put an opt-out clause in his contract for after this season, he claims, so he could bolt if there was a lockout. The lockout fears have faded, though, as a new collective bargaining agreement is in the offing. However, Jackson could sail into the L.A. sunset anyway, whether the Knicks have a big year or flop. Jackson is almost assuredly gone if the Knicks lose 50 games again. A successful playoff season also could push him into a third retirement, feeling he has left the club in capable hands with Hornacek and his successor, general manager Steve Mills.
The franchise is no longer reliant on the triangle offense and Jackson may feel his presence no longer is required. His fiancée, Lakers VP Jeanie Buss, and Jackson each have expressed the difficulty of living on opposite coasts. Jackson, 70, may be ready for an easier life at his beach house in Playa del Rey. Would Mills have the nerve to promote Liberty president Isiah Thomas as his GM or director of college scouting? Unlikely.
Three bold predictions
1. After a rocky start partly due to Rose’s preseason absence and Noah’s decline, Anthony starts making references to his no-trade clause.
2. Porzingis is voted into the All-Star Game at forward while Anthony’s starting streak ends at age 32.
3. Jackson issues a bizarre tweet in which he has to go back and clarify (OK, maybe not so bold).
Buzzer beaters
Newcomer to watch
Rose never got much of a chance to execute a fast-paced offense during his years with former Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau, so when he gets back in top shape, this speedy attack should spotlight his enormous talents. Rose says he won’t be a volume shooter as in the past. As he plays for a new max contract, he is looking to get back into the class of the Eastern Conference’s elite point guards with Kyrie Irving, John Wall, Isaiah Thomas, Kyle Lowry and even Jeff Teague. Missing 16 days of the preseason because of an unseemly sexual assault trial isn’t the best start.
Most important coaching decision
Managing minutes and staging a set rotation became one of Derek Fisher’s downfalls last season. Fisher occasionally played 12 guys in the first quarter alone. Hornacek has an intriguing if unproven bench, but needs to find a definitive 10-man group without constant fluctuations. One bench issue is maximizing the talents of European rookies Hernangomez and Kuzminskas.
Good days to come
Jennings took the NBA by storm as a Bucks rookie bypassed in the 2008 draft by the Knicks. The past two seasons have been miserable for Jennings as he rehabbed a major Achilles injury, but he looked energized by the lively Garden crowd with his speed, spunk and penetrating ability.
Bad days ahead
The concern is Noah’s hamstring issues in preseason foreshadowed a season full of ailments. He’s got a lot of mileage on his body, and he’s more prone to injury because of his physical game. And the 2014 Defensive Player of the Year can’t be as effective anchoring the defense if he’s not active. The Knicks could miss Robin Lopez, now in Chicago, and his 82 games more than they know.
Don’t be surprised if …
Porzingis, with his inside-outside game and stronger legs under him on his 3-pointer, is voted to his first of many All-Star games as a starting forward.
Story that won’t go away
Anthony’s no-trade clause. Everything feels groovy now — Anthony was excited about the offseason moves — but if the losing resembles the past two seasons, it might be a mutual call to cut losses and find him a new home.
Five games to watch
Nov. 4 at Chicago
The War in the Windy City is coming up soon. Other than Tuesday’s season opener in Cleveland against the defending champs, this stands as the season’s most suspenseful night. Rose returns home to play his former team of eight seasons against the backdrop of stating the New York crowd will appreciate him more. Then there’s Joakim Noah’s return to Chicago to go mano-a-mano against Robin Lopez. As gravy, former Knicks first-round pick Jerian Grant, added to the Rose package, gets a crack at revenge.
Dec. 2 vs. Minnesota
The Porzingis vs. Karl-Anthony Towns sophomore showdown is only part of the drama. In comes Tom Thibodeau, with pundits surely ready to bring up Jackson’s decision to not even call Thibs during his coaching search.
Dec. 13 at Phoenix
Hornacek’s friends feel he got a raw deal in his final season as Suns coach, getting fired Jan. 31 after losing his top assistants, Jerry Sichting and Mike Longabardi, in late December. Earl Watson, promoted several times last year and named Hornacek’s replacement, is back. Did Watson work behind the scenes to undermine Hornacek?
Dec. 25 vs. Boston
If the Knicks are as good as they look on paper, this will be an Atlantic Division showdown of old rivals on the NBA’s Christmas centerpiece afternoon. Al Horford’s addition has made the Celtics more fearsome.
March 5 vs. Golden State
The real super team plays the Garden in Kevin Durant’s first Garden game as a Warrior. All-Star teammates Stephen Curry, Draymond Green and Klay Thompson will have Durant’s back. KD dissed the Knicks this July, declining to meet with them in the Hamptons.
The Post’s forecast
41-41. Third in Atlantic, eighth seed in East. First-round playoff KO by Cleveland. Everything would have to go perfectly for the Knicks to be a 50-win team, and nothing ever goes smoothly at the Garden.