Phil Jackson’s time as president of the New York Knicks was a well-documented disaster.
An important proponent of the triangle offense, Jackson appeared to be convinced that basketball’s Bermuda Triangle is in Madison Square Garden, where he unsuccessfully spent three years trying to help the Knickerbockers find a way out of their misery. Jackson’s out of the situation now after getting fired. The Knicks are still wallowing at their own incompetence, partly wrought by Jackson’s mismanagement.
There are surely countless stories ranging from the unintentionally funny to the downright miserable pertaining to how Jackson ran the team, and Frank Isola of New York Daily News managed to detail many of them, including this one that features an unnamed free agent:
Jackson even used the triangle to recruit free agents. When Jackson sat down with a free agent last July the meeting got off to an awkward start when Jackson couldn’t get his computer to work. General Manager Steve Mills had to step in to start the video of how Jackson envisioned the Knicks and the unnamed free agent would play.
That video? Footage of the ’90s Chicago Bulls. The free agent in question was confused. He couldn’t figure out if Jeff Hornacek or Jackson was the coach. Either way, the player signed elsewhere.
Where do we start here? Do we first have to analyze the metaphorical value of that computer being the Knicks? Do we put on our detective spectacles and research who that player was? Was Mills stabbing Jackson repeatedly with his mind throughout the meeting?
In any case, that minor minutiae of the Jackson era in New York is just another piece of evidence that the multi-titled coach isn’t cut out to be a team executive. We don’t know where he’s headed next, but don’t bet on him landing with a front office any time soon.
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