It is official!
Phil Jackson is the new
President of Basketball Operations for the NY Knicks.
The Knickerbockers haven't won an NBA championship since Jackson played for the team in 1973 and the "Zen Master" has a lot of work in front of him on the big Broadway stage.
I worked on the Lakers' broadcasts for many years and hosted Phil's radio show as well. He has never worked as an NBA executive and he told me several times that he had no desire to be an NBA general manager.
Steve Mills has that job in New York and I see Jackson relying heavily on Mills for the leg work while Phil's role plays out more as a supervising consultant who owns ultimate decision making powers for as long as James Dolan allows.
The Knicks don't have much talent and they have no wiggle room in the salary cap. They do have Carmello Anthony (blessing or curse?) Anthony is one of the most explosive offensive players in the game. He makes the Knicks exciting, but he does not make them a better team.
Anthony says he is willing to"adjust" his game, but the only time he was seen as a "team player"was in the Olympics when he was surrounded by amazingly talented players.
That is not going to happen in NY for some time.
If Anthony feels that he is the best player on the squad, he will stick to his individual game,
put the brakes on the offense,
and do it his way.
Phil Jackson will make a difference in New York. As a coach, he was a basketball guru who knew how to bring out the best in individuals and get them to play hard for the good of the team. It remains to be seen if Jackson can make that happen from the front office.
I know this, Phil loves a challenge and he loves New York. Turning the Knicks around quickly will take a near miracle, but his signing has already triggered positive buzz in the Big Apple and around the NBA. It has also got Lakers' fans scratching their heads again.
Jackson had tremendous success with the Lakers and he is engaged to Jeannie Buss, the team's V.P. of Business Operations, yet the organization has rejected him twice in the past six months.
I thought Phil left the door open when he asked for a week to consider the Knicks' offer, but the Lakers' brass never knocked or negotiated. Egos prevailed and now
New York's gain is the Lakers' loss!
It will not be easy for Jackson to carry on a love affair with New York and with his west coast fiancé, at the same time.
They are "kissing rivals" now and it did not have to be that way. The Lakers need as much help as the Knicks right now and Jackson would have been a great addition to L.A.'s front office, but the season of disenchantment continues for Lakers' fans who have to be wondering
if the organization has any direction at all right now.
**
No comments:
Post a Comment