Skip to main content

Lakers legend Phil Jackson has been in contact with Jeanie Buss all season regarding team matters, per report


 


The Los Angeles Lakers picked up a much-needed win on Saturday night, coming back from a 14-point deficit to beat the Golden State Warriors and snap a four-game losing streak. LeBron James led the way with 56 points, setting a new high for his Lakers tenure, and for one night at least there were good vibes around the team. 


Based on how this season has transpired, though, it was always only a matter of time before the drama started up again. And it has on Monday in a rather unexpected way. As it turns out, former Lakers head coach Phil Jackson has quietly been in contact with Lakers owner Jeanie Buss (also his former fiancée) all season long regarding team matters, according to Sam Amick and Bill Oram of The Athletic. 


Sources say Jackson, the Lakers legend and ex-fiancé of Buss, whose presence at Saturday's win against Golden State was highlighted by the team's Twitter account, has been in frequent contact with Buss about team matters all season long. The complicated and often uncomfortable dynamics surrounding the [Russell] Westbrook situation, in particular, are known to have drawn his interest. As unofficial consultants go, they don't get much more experienced or credible than Jackson.


Truth be told, Buss' desire to hear Jackson's point of view on this team should surprise no one. Especially because of his close ties with [Kurt] Rambis, who -- like [Rob] Pelinka with [Kobe] Bryant -- has the kind of close connection with Jackson that has long been considered a factor when it comes to his own stature.


Jackson, who lives in Los Angeles during the winter months as a respite from his Montana home base, has been extremely close with Rambis for decades. They coached together during two of Jackson's five Lakers titles (2002 and 2009), then came close to reuniting in 2012 when then-Lakers executives Mitch Kupchak and Jim Buss stunned the NBA world by picking Mike D'Antoni instead.


It's hard to know exactly what to make of this revelation without knowing more about Jackson's involvement. Is he simply a sounding board for Buss, someone he's had a very close relationship with for a long time? Or has he unofficially been influencing team decisions? 


The note regarding his interest in the Russell Westbrook situation is particularly interesting given recent reports that higher ups in the Lakers front office have been pushing for Westbrook to be removed from the starting lineup -- something head coach Frank Vogel has reportedly resisted. It would certainly be notable if Jackson played a part in those discussions. 


We also cannot ignore the contentious past relationship between Jackson and LeBron, which stems from a 2016 incident in which Jackson called LeBron's friends and business associates a "posse." LeBron responded by later saying "I'm not a fan of Phil Jackson." Again, we don't know Jackson's level of influence, nor what LeBron thinks of it, but it's hard to imagine he's thrilled. 


While you can understand why Buss would reach out to Jackson, the shadowy aspect of his influence is just not what this team needs right now. 



Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Bill Russell Once Explained Why He Didn't Bother With Celtics Fans: "When I Was A Star, The Fans Called Us The 'Boston Globetrotters' Because The Celtics Had Black Players."

  While the NBA is a beacon for freedom and tolerance in America, things didn't start off that way. In a place like Boston, during the 50s and 60s, racial tension was a pretty serious problem, and superstar big man Bill Russell had to deal with it on a game-to-game basis. Today, it can be hard for us to imagine just how difficult being a black basketball player really was back then. Fortunately, we have some clips: "The number one paper was the Boston Herald and they didn't like the idea of an NBA team having black players. Out there, the star was Bob Cousy. No matter what I did, Cousy was the star. I remember I had a game where I had 25 points, 25 rebounds, 10 blocks, and the Boston Herald said I was lucky to play with Cousy." Unfortunately, the media didn't give Russell his respect back then. Despite being the best player on the court, and on his team, Cousy and others always got the spotlight. Even the fans weren't very accepting of Bill: "I didn't...
Post a Comment
Read more

From Deep: At long last, Nikola Jokic's Nuggets can envision getting to the top of the mountain

  Jamal Murray tore his ACL on April 12, 2021. Leading up to that night, he'd been playing at an All-NBA level for two months: In a 25-game stretch, Murray averaged 24.1 points on .509/.459/.935 shooting splits, 4.2 rebounds and 5.2 assists. He was even more efficient than he was in the bubble playoffs, and his defense had improved, too. Murray only got to play with Aaron Gordon, the Denver Nuggets' big trade-deadline addition, for five games. They won them all except the one in which Murray got injured. In 110 minutes, their new starting five scored slightly more efficiently than any iteration of the Kevin Durant-era death lineup in Golden State and defended like a top-five team. Two Nikola Jokic MVP awards later, Murray is back. So is Michael Porter Jr., who signed a five-year extension about a year ago and needed back surgery nine games into the 2020-21 season. The Nuggets remember how easily everything slid into place with Gordon in the mix. Newcomer Kentavious Caldwell-Pop...
Post a Comment
Read more

Sixers' James Harden backs teammate Joel Embiid for MVP: 'He deserves it, man'

  James Harden has been a member of the Philadelphia 76ers for less than two months, but that's been more than enough time for him to appreciate the brilliance of Joel Embiid. The duo is expected to help the Sixers compete for a championship, but Harden believes another trophy should be on its way to Philly this year.  In an interview with Ramona Shelburne of ESPN, Harden backed Embiid for MVP, saying "he deserves it, man." "I've only been here for a few weeks, but I already see his mindset," Harden said. "He wants to win. Some guys just want numbers, but he has both. He has the mentality of winning, and he scores the ball at a high level. I think he's prepared himself, especially coming off last year, for this year to be one of his best years." This has indeed been one of Embiid's best years. He's averaging a career-high 29.8 points, 11.3 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.4 blocks while shooting 48.8 percent from the field and 35.8 percent f...
Post a Comment
Read more