Phil Jackson Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Knicks Notes: Jackson, Carmelo, MWP

March 17th, 2014 at 12:41pm CST by Zachary Links

Will Phil Jackson succeed at the helm of the Knicks’ front office? Bulls executive vice president John Paxson seems to think so, writes K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune. “Phil is a really smart basketball guy and I have no doubt, given time, he’ll do very well,” said Paxson, who played for Jackson and worked on his staff one season. “I’ve always felt he has a sixth sense about people and it’s one of the reasons he’s been able to blend different personalities into a cohesive unit.”

Carmelo Anthony told reporters, including Al Iannazzone of Newsday (on Twitter) that the Knicks are looking more attractive now for free agents thanks to the addition of Jackson. Of course, the Knicks are hoping that includes Anthony himself, who will hit the open market this summer.
Fellow Hall of Fame coach Larry Brown told ESPN Radio’s Mike and Mike that he hopes to see Jackson keep Mike Woodson on the Knicks’ bench, tweets Adam Zagoria of SNY. Brown went on to say that next year will be a struggle for New York but they’ll have opportunities after that thanks to cap flexibility (link).
Metta World Peace was willing to cooperate when Woodson pulled him from the rotation, but he wasn’t OK with being told to tone down his leadership role in the locker room, Marc Berman of the New York Post writes. “I didn’t mind playing any role, but I didn’t see myself having a role, not even a leadership role,’’ MWP said. “I was fine with being on the bench, but at times I wanted to help lead. But at times I tried to lead, it was met with resistance. I backed off a little and tried to blend in with the team. I tried to find where I could complement the players but I couldn’t find any room to complement.’’ Meanwhile, the veteran says that he won’t rule out returning to New York.
Earlier today, Marc Berman of the New York Post reported that Jackson is a fan of Iman Shumpert and it appears that he’ll be in the club’s future plans.

Iman Shumpert Remains In Knicks Plans

March 17th, 2014 at 10:42am CST by Zachary Links

Iman Shumpert was one of the most popular names on Hoops Rumors from the start of the season until the trade deadline. While he wasn’t dealt, it was clear that the Knicks’ front office would have preferred to move Shumpert elsewhere. Now, however, Shumpert appears to have a legitimate future with Phil Jackson’s Knicks, a league source tells Marc Berman of the New York Post.

It’s believed that Shumpert could shine in the triangle offense and it helps that he is a defensive-minded player who sacrifices his game and doesn’t need to score a lot to have an impact. For his part, the 23-year-old has been enthusiastic about the arrival of the Zen Master.

If not for Jackson, Shumpert very well could have been on the move this summer seeing as how he was an inch away from being dealt in the winter. Knicks brass had plans to sit Shumpert on the eve of the trade deadline in February in New Orleans against the Pelicans, Berman learned, so that they could follow through on an agreed deal with the Clippers. The Knicks, needing a win, nixed that plan, and after Shumpert sprained his left MCL, the deal sending him out west for Darren Collison and Matt Barnes was called off.

The Knicks still could have moved Shumpert to the Thunder for their 2014 first-round selection, but New York declined the offer since they weren’t getting back a piece that could help them in the short term.

Knicks Notes: Jackson, Dolan, Frazier

March 16th, 2014 at 11:12am CST by Eddie Scarito

In case you missed it, Phil Jackson has finally agreed to a deal with the Knicks. There has been quite a bit of talk on what this deal means for the franchise going forward, with much more still to come. Here’s the latest on the Zen Master:

Mike Lupica of The Daily News thinks the hiring of Jackson is a diversionary tactic on team owner James Dolan’s part. While the move might pan out for basketball reasons, the main benefit according to Lupica, is this will stave off the growing dissent amongst Knicks fans. The article also states that since Dolan couldn’t get the world’s best player (LeBron James) to come to the Garden, he instead got the most famous coach. The problem is that he won’t be coaching, but instead will be a rookie front office executive, says Lupica.
Add Walt Frazier to the list of people praising the hiring of Jackson, writes George Willis of The New York Post. The former Knicks great says of Jackson, “He understands the nuances of a New York and what it’s like, the fan base, how long this team has suffered. I think that’s why he came back. He probably needed a new challenge. What does he have to prove? All the rings that he has, if he fails it’s going to be a negative for him. But he needed a challenge and what better place than him coming home and trying to bring a champion to New York.”
Michael Powell of The New York Times believes the best thing that Jackson has to offer New York is hope. If Jackson can bring in a GM that can navigate the salary cap for him, then his ability to manipulate player’s egos and possibly attract bigger name free agents could have the team playing meaningful basketball in June for a change, opines Powell.
The Knicks aren’t the first New York team to try and bring in a franchise savior, writes Mike Vaccaro of The New York Post. He compares this move to hires made by the Giants and Jets, moves that were designed to energize the fan base as well as offer these organizations some legitimacy. Jackson brings a “fat, fancy resume,” but he also brings a sense that there’s a professional in charge again, someone who knows what they’re doing, writes Vaccaro.

Knicks Notes: Jackson, Cleamons, Woodson

March 15th, 2014 at 10:16pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Carmelo Anthony is one of the players on the Knicks who is excited about Phil Jackson joining the organization, writes Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com. Anthony said, “I’m a chess player. That was a power move right there. You know what I mean? So, now we’re going to see what’s the next move, but that was a great power move.” Whether or not Anthony re-signs will play a huge part in shaping the team’s future, so any endorsement could be considered a positive sign, opines Begley.

Eastern Rumors: Cavs, Jackson, Brown, Rondo

March 15th, 2014 at 5:07pm CST by Charlie Adams

Here’s the latest slate of rumors out of the NBA’s Eastern Conference..

The Cavaliers were interested in hiring Phil Jackson in some capacity, writes Bob Finnan of the Morning Journal. However, the Knicks moved in quickly and signed him before they could act.
In the same piece, Finnan notes that Mike Brown has had to alter his coaching style to accommodate to a young and inexperienced Cavaliers team this season. Still, Brown is on the hot seat and might find himself out of the job in Cleveland, Finnan suggests.
Charley Rosen of HoopsHype runs down the Knicks‘ roster and explores the likelihood that each player has of being retained by Jackson. Rosen notes many of the players on the team don’t appear to be fits for Jackson’s system.
Rajon Rondo has consistently been the topic of trade rumors, but Celtics owner Wyc Grousbeck recently spoke out and said that Rondo will continue to be the leader of the franchise going forward. Grousbeck’s words mean a lot to Rondo, reports Mike Petraglia of WEEI. “It means a lot, especially coming from the head guy,” Rondo said. “With all the rumors swirling, the criticism that I was having throughout the past couple weeks, he stuck his neck out. He didn’t have to say anything, but he did.”

Knicks Rumors: Jackson, LeBron, Woodson, Kerr

March 15th, 2014 at 3:26pm CST by Charlie Adams

The Knicks suddenly find themselves only three games back from a playoff berth after winning six straight contests. Even if they can sneak into the postseason, it seems unlikely they’d be able to upset the Heat or Pacers, but New York might have a brighter future ahead of them now that they have Phil Jackson on board. Here’s the latest out of NYC:

With Jackson taking control of the Knicks, LeBron James will now at least look at the possibility of signing in NYC this summer, one James confidant tells Frank Isola of the New York Daily News. “There’s no way LeBron would have gone to New York under the current climate,” said the source. “He had a falling-out with CAA (agency) and that was a problem as well. But with Phil there I think he will look at it.”
At least one NBA coach thinks Jackson is taking the role in New York simply because he’s interested in the payday, reports Mike Lupica of the New York Daily News. Jackson’s $12MM salary is much higher than the league average for other executives, as Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders points out (on Twitter).
Mike Woodson sounds like he’s worried about his job security, suggests Adam Zagoria of The Knicks Blog. “It’s basketball,” Woodson said. “They try to re-shape, they go through changes and this is no different. You bring in a great basketball mind into your organization and eventually it will be reshaped, so how and who and when, only time will tell.”
Growing belief around the Knicks organization is that Steve Kerr will replace Woodson as the next Knicks head coach, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.
Jackson has been critical of Carmelo Anthony‘s game in the past, but Melo doesn’t take it personally, reports Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com. Anthony believes his game has evolved since the Zen Master criticized him back in 2012.
Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated thinks the decision to bring in Jackson is more style than substance. With great executives like Masai Ujiri earning a fraction of Jackson’s salary, Mannix thinks the move by owner James Dolan is a definite overpay.

L.A. Notes: Jackson, Bryant, Howard

March 15th, 2014 at 10:11am CST by Cray Allred

One effect of the Phil Jackson signing in New York has been some fallout on the other coast. Jackson’s estrangement from the Lakers organization he guided to five championships will be permanent, at least professionally, for another five years. As we learned yesterday, the Lakers did have interest in bringing Jackson back to their front office, but weren’t willing to offer the kind of control he could obtain in New York. Here’s more from Los Angeles:

Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com details how the Lakers ownership structure made the potential to bring in Jackson a virtual impossibility. Former owner Jerry Buss intentionally handed the franchise over to be shared between his six children, preferring for the family to stay at the forefront instead of giving the keys to a basketball legend like Jackson or Jerry West.
Shelburne says the Buss family considered a return from Jackson for several months leading up to his signing with the Knicks.
Mike D’Antoni, who won the Lakers coaching job over Jackson last season, told reporters including Mike Bresnahan of The Los Angeles Times that the signing is a good move for the Knicks.
D’Antoni, who often hears “We want Phil!” chants from the home crowd when the Lakers struggle, added that he feels no relief over his job now that Jackson is signed elsewhere.
Sam Amick of USA Today says that the Lakers decision to let Jackson go to New York without a fight shows that Kobe Bryant has lost his clout with L.A. brass. Bryant recently spoke openly about his disappointment at missing out on Jackson’s return to the league for a second time.
Pau Gasol and Jordan Farmar think that Jackson will do a great job in New York, per Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News.
Steve Nash told Bill Simmons of Grantland on a recent podcast he knew Dwight Howard wouldn’t work out with the Lakers early on last season (transcription via Sean Highkin of USA Today). “I think everyone could see it was going to be tough from the start. As the season went on, I think Dwight didn’t hide the fact that he didn’t like it,” Nash said.

Phil Jackson Revelations and Reactions

March 14th, 2014 at 8:09pm CST by Cray Allred

We learned earlier that Phil Jackson has signed an agreement to become the Knicks president of basketball operations. Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com tweeted that the contract being finalized is a five-year arrangement without any stake in ownership, to pay the coaching legend $12MM a year. The press conference announced by the Knicks for next Tuesday will indeed be the official introduction of Jackson as the new head of New York’s front office, a source tells Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press. Now that the news is more or less final, reactions to the deal are flooding in around the league.

Jackson’s discussions with the Knicks had been going on for several months before becoming a reality, reports Shelburne. Shelburne says that the Lakers had multiple internal discussions on the prospect of hiring Jackson, but never contacted his representatives because they knew they wouldn’t be willing to offer the amount of power that the Knicks were. A source tells Scott Cacciola of The New York Times that it was current Knicks GM Steve Mills who first met with Jackson to discuss him joining New York.

Carmelo Anthony, Amar’e Stoudemire, and J.R. Smith all expressed different levels of excitement and anticipation to meet Jackson and hear about his vision for the future of the team, per Peter Botte of The New York Daily News. Anthony says Jackson’s arrival won’t “have any effect” on his looming free agency decisions this summer, but Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPNNewYork.com thinks ‘Melo should stick around since Jackson has shown himself capable of unlocking greatness in stars.

Some people are puzzled over the signing. One NBA executive told J.A. Adande of ESPN that Jackson’s relationship with Knicks owner James Dolan is doomed. “Phil and Dolan will not work. Like, never,” the exec said. Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports thinks the Jackson signing is a confusing move for the Knicks. In a video segment, Spears predicts that there will be similarities to Larry Bird‘s setup in Indiana, where Jackson provides the final yes or no on team activities, but other team employees do the bulk of the front office “grunt work.” Spears doesn’t think Jackson will return to coach at any point, but he does think there will be constant pressure from Knicks fans to do just that, similar to the constant speculation of Pat Riley‘s return to the bench during Erik Spoelstra’s first seasons with the Heat.

Others are more optimistic about the deal. Mike Vaccaro of The New York Post thinks that characterizations of Jackson as successful only due to coaching the best talent are wrong, and that he has turned around imperfect teams like New York before. Zach Lowe of Grantland argues that the Knicks don’t actually need a complete overhaul in their front office because there are already good, progressive basketball minds in New York. Rather, Lowe says the Knicks need Jackson to add a calming personality to the team and put an end to their pattern of caving in to agents and making knee-jerk moves that undermine their otherwise smart team-building decisions. Lowe doesn’t think Jackson will relax his emphasis on the triangle offense in building the Knicks, pointing out that the system goes beyond Xs and Os for Jackson, connecting to his deepest philosophical beliefs. Howard Beck of Bleacher Report agrees with Lowe’s take, seeing this as the “Zen Master’s” opportunity to mentor an entire, unstable franchise, not just a handful of players.

Lakers Rumors: D’Antoni, Gasol, Jackson

March 14th, 2014 at 4:50pm CST by Zachary Links

The latest out of Los Angeles..

The Lakers lost 131-102 to the Thunder last night, but bigger problems are looming for L.A., writes Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times. Kobe Bryant reportedly isn’t wild about coach Mike D’Antoni, but the Lakers are reluctant to part ways for a number of reasons. First, they think he’s a capable coach and they don’t want to be known as a franchise without coach stability. Perhaps more importantly, the club doesn’t want to pay him $4MM to not coach them after making a similar move with Mike Brown. In another interesting wrinkle, many of the club’s younger players enjoy playing in D’Antoni’s offense because their inflated scoring totals give them more value as they look ahead to their next contract.
Pau Gasol supports Kobe’s open criticism of the Lakers, writes Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News. “I’m glad that he spoke his mind,” Gasol said. “He wants to win. He’s got two years under contract with the franchise. He wants to be in the best possible position to win. Whether you do that publicly or internally, that’s totally up to you. He spoke his mind and you have to respect him for that.” The big man reportedly isn’t a fan of D’Antoni’s either.
On Wednesday, both Kobe and Magic Johnson made public pleas to Lakers management to hire Phil Jackson, but a Lakers source tells Frank Isola of the New York Daily News that team VP Jim Buss has little interest in bringing back the Hall of Fame coach.

Knicks Notes: Jackson, Woodson, Kerr

March 14th, 2014 at 3:50pm CST by Zachary Links

The Knicks hiring Phil Jackson to oversee their basketball operations is the next best thing to James Dolan selling the team, opines Ian O’Connor of ESPNNewYork.com. Jackson isn’t buying the Knicks, but he’ll effectively be renting them for the next five years, which is about as much as fans can ask for. Meanwhile, one league official feels that Dolan will be handicapping Jackson if he forces him to keep neophyte GM Steve Mills on the basketball side. Instead, the official says, Jackson should be allowed to hire Steve Kerr to fill that role. More out of MSG..

The Knicks announced that they will have a major announcement at a Tuesday press conference, presumably to introduce Jackson.
WIthin his story about Knicks coach Mike Woodson wanting a sit-down with Jackson, Marc Berman of the New York Post writes that Jackson’s contract technically hasn’t been signed yet. A press conference is expected to take place on Tuesday and could possibly include fellow Knicks legends Bill Bradley and Willis Reed.
If the Knicks oust Woodson, he would be a top candidate at his alma mater of Indiana University, writes Frank Isola of the New York Daily News. Of course, that would mean current coach Tom Crean not returning to the Hoosiers.
For his part, Woodson told reporters, including Adam Zagoria of SNY (on Twitter), that he was unhappy with the report tying him to Indiana. Meanwhile, Isola (Twitter links) notes that Woodson has a history of playing coy when it comes to this sort of thing.
Count Charles Oakley among the former Knicks players who believes that Jackson will do a great job in his new role, writes Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com. “He’s someone with a brand, an ex-Knicks player, 11 championships — he’s got he whole resume,” Oakley said. “Having him is like taking a test and already having the answers. You can’t go wrong when his hand is involved in what you’re trying to do.“
Jackson shouldn’t be concerned about not being cut any media slack from the get-go, writes Bob Raissman of the New York Daily News.