After the Los Angeles Lakers signed the biggest fish off of the free agent market in the form of four-time MVP LeBron James, their attention is now trained on adding more complementary pieces who could aid The King. They’ve done so by adding the likes of Rajon Rondo, JaVale McGee, and Lance Stephenson, but whether those acquisitions are enough or not for James and the Lakers, ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith mentioned another name he believes could give James a hand and guidance from the sidelines.
During a recent episode of First Take, Smith brought up the name of former Lakers head coach Phil Jackson as a possible hire for Los Angeles.
There are no prior rumors that the Lakers are considering replacing current team head coach Luke Walton with Jackson, who has steered the franchise to five NBA titles.
While Phil Jackson has had plenty of success in Los Angeles, where he’s generally a beloved figure, not to mention that he was once engaged to Lakers owner Jeanie Buss, it’s unlikely for the team to get his services. For one, such a move could alienate LeBron James. According to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, who was with Smith on the show, James does not like Jackson.
When it comes to Phil Jackson, this I can say unequivocally: LeBron does not like Phil Jackson; has no interest in him; has taken direct jabs at him before; does not like the way he treated Carmelo Anthony; maybe has respect for his accomplishments but certainly does not respect the way he looks at the game right now.
It could be remembered that James once took offense to Jackson referring to him and his camp as “posse” back on 2016, when Jackson was still serving the New York Knicks as a front office executive.
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