Phil Jackson was born on September 17, 1945, in Montana, where he grew up. He is an ex-player, coach, and general manager in the NBA. As a coach, Jackson has won six NBA championships with the Chicago Bulls and five times with the Los Angeles Lakers.
He holds the record for NBA titles (11), finals played (13 ), wins in the playoffs (229 wins), percentage of wins in the regular season (70.4%) and in the playoffs (68.8% ), as well as the second-best record in a regular season (72-10) in 1995-1996 behind the Golden State Warriors (73-9) in 2015-16.
During his long career, he has worked with exceptional players, such as Jordan, Pippen, Kobe, and Shaquille. Inspired by Eastern philosophy, Phil Jackson earned the nickname “Zen Master”. He is known for the use of famous Tex Winter’s triangle offense and overall holistic approach.
As a player, Phil Jackson played 12 seasons in the NBA, winning two league titles with the Knicks in 1970 and 1973.
In 2007, Phil Jackson became part of the Hall of Fame. In 1996, as part of the 50th-anniversary celebrations of the NBA, Jackson was named as one of the ten best coaches in NBA history.
Jackson retired as a coach in 2011 and joined the Knicks as general manager in March 2014. He was dismissed from his post in 2017.
Phil Jackson – Early life
Both his parents, Charles and Elizabeth Funk Jackson, were ministers of the Assemblies of God. His mother came from a German Mennonites before her conversion to the Assemblies of God.
His father usually preached on Sunday morning and his mother on Sunday evening in the churches they served.
Eventually, his father became a ministerial supervisor. Jackson, his two brothers, and his half-sister grew up in a remote area of Montana, in a stark environment where no dancing or TV was allowed.
He did not see his first movie before he was in his senior year in high school and went to a party for the first time in College.
Phil Jackson – High school
Phil Jackson attended high school in North Dakota. He was a star basketball player who led the team to a state title. He also played American football, was a pitcher on the baseball team, and was a discus thrower in track and field competitions.
Jackson has caught the attention of several baseball scouts. Their notes found their way to legendary NBA coach Bill Fitch, who worked as a baseball coach at an early age and had done scouting for the Atlanta Braves. Fitch became the basketball team coach at the University of North Dakota in the spring of 1962, during Jackson’s first year of high school.
Phil Jackson – University career
Coach Fitch managed to get Jackson from the University of North Dakota, where he was a member of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity. Jackson did well there, helping the Fighting Hawks to be third and fourth place in the NCAA Division II tournament in their first two years (1965 and 1966).
They were defeated by the Salukis these two years. The star of the Salukis at the time was Walt Frazier, who later played with Jackson in the NBA. Still, the two didn’t meet until 1965, as Frazier was ineligible academically in 1966.
Phil Jackson – Playing career
In the 1967 draft, he was selected by the New York Knicks in the second round in 17 the position. Despite being a well-rounded athlete, Phil Jackson was a limited and relatively slow shooter with long arms. He compensated for his weaknesses with his analysis of the game and a lot of work, especially in defense (he is also the player in the league committing the most faults in 1974-1975, a title he shares with Bob Dandridge).
Although he had very little playing time, Jackson became a fan favorite and one of the NBA’s main substitutes. In his first season in the NBA, he was part of the NBA All-Rookie team. An essential replacement for the champion Knicks’ unit in 1973, he became the starter shortly after the departure of many retired players. Jackson retired in 1980 after the last two seasons with the New Jersey Nets.
Phil Jackson – Coaching career
Jackson mainly coached minor league teams during the following years, notably in the CBA with the Patroons Albany club (he won a title there in 1984 ). He actively searched for a job in the NBA with no success, perhaps because of his known passion for the hippie movement.
Phil Jackson – Chicago Bulls (1987-1998)
He was finally appointed in 1987 as an assistant coach at the Chicago Bulls under head coach Doug Collins. Two years later, he was appointed as a head coach.
Phil Jackson installed the famous triangle offense, developed by Tex Winter, which allowed the Bulls to win six titles in nine years, including two three-peats. Jackson is also renowned for his “zen” approach to training which enabled him to deal with demanding players, including Dennis Rodman, whom he managed to channel.
Rodman was traded shortly before the 1995-1996 season by the San Antonio Spurs. The league’s top rebounder didn’t adapt to the strict character of coach Brian Hill. Rodman became a vital member of the triple-champion team, an outstanding defender, and the best rebounder in the league each year.
Jackson is also renowned for his unique way of conveying his messages to players: in training, during viewing sessions, he intersects the analyzes with film sequences. He regularly recommends his players read certain books.
But the relationship between Phil Jackson and Bulls general manager Jerry Krause worsened over time. After the 1998 title, Jackson left the team and took a year off. It appeared that Jackson’s departure conditioned the retirement of Michael Jordan, who nevertheless seemed eager to continue for another year.
Phil Jackson – Los Angeles Lakers (1999-2004)
Jackson took over a talented Los Angeles Lakers team and immediately produced results as he did in Chicago. In his first season with the Lakers, the team went 67-15 in the regular season.
Reaching the Western Conference Finals, they knocked out the Portland Trail Blazers in a tough seven-game series and went on to win the NBA title in 2000 by beating the Indiana Pacers.
With the talented duo of superstars Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryan, Jackson led the Lakers to two more titles in 2001 and 2002, against the Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Nets.
However, the team lost its momentum with injuries, weak play from the bench, and public tension between Bryant and O’Neal. In the second round of the 2003 playoffs, they were beaten by future NBA champions, San Antonio Spurs.
While remarkably effective in Jackson’s game, Kobe Bryant had a personal distaste for the style of basketball Jackson proposed and even called it boring. In matches, Bryant often neglected tactical set-up to experiment with his own one-on-one moves, infuriating the normally calm Jackson. Bryant managed to make the coach lose patience, and the latter even demanded that Bryant should be traded, although the Lakers management rejected the request.
Before the 2003-04 season, the Lakers signed veterans Karl Malone and Gary Payton. They had been superstars for the Utah Jazz and Seattle SuperSonics, respectively, which enabled the team to have the label of big favorites. But from day one of training camp, the Lakers were beset with distractions. Bryant’s sexual assault trial, the discord between O’Neal and Bryant, and repeated arguments between Jackson and Bryant affected the entire team during the season.
Despite these distractions, the Lakers beat the Spurs to join the 2004 NBA Finals. However, they were upset by the Pistons, who used their strong defense to dominate the Lakers, winning the title 4-1. It was the first time in ten finals, as a coach, that Jackson lost the NBA title.
Phil Jackson – Sabbatical year (2004-2005)
In June 2004, three days after the loss to the Pistons, the Lakers announced that Jackson had stepped down as Lakers coach. Jackson had sought to double his salary from $ 6 million to $ 12 million when his contract expired. He had a contract offer from the Lakers, but he did not follow through.
Many fans attributed Jackson’s departure directly to Bryant’s wishes, while Lakers owner Jerry Buss reportedly sided with Bryant. Jackson, Bryant, and Buss denied that Bryant made an explicit request regarding Jackson.
However, O’Neal has indicated that he feels the franchise is indeed in the process of making Bryant’s wishes come true with Jackson’s departure.
That fall, Phil Jackson published “The Last Season,” a book describing his take on the tensions surrounding the 2003-2004 Lakers team. The book was punctiliously critical of Kobe Bryant.
Phil Jackson – Return to the Lakers (2005-2011)
In June 2005, he returned as a head coach for the Los Angeles Lakers, bringing the team to a seventh-place to advance to the playoffs. One more time, promoting the notion of selfless team play emphasized in the triangle offense, the team has achieved substantial results, especially in the season’s final month.
However, the Lakers faced a complicated series in the first round of the playoffs in 2006 against the Phoenix Suns, led by MVP Steve Nash. It was the first time Jackson’s team failed to reach the second round of the playoffs. The Lakers took a 3-1 lead, but the Suns won the last three to win the Series.
In January 2007 Jackson won his 900th game, placing 9th on the list of the most victories for NBA coaches. With the win, he became the career-fastest coach to reach 900 wins, doing so in just 1,264 games, breaking Pat Riley’s previous record with 1,278 games.
During the 2007-2008 season, the Lakers were able to secure Spanish star Pau Gasol from the Memphis Grizzlies. Jackson led the team to the 2008 NBA Finals against the Boston Celtics with one more skilled big to pair with Bryant. Celtics won the series 4-2. It was the second time in 11 finals that Jackson has lost an NBA Finals.
In December 2008, Jackson became the sixth coach to win 1,000 games when the Lakers beat the Celtics in their first game since last year’s final. He was once again the fastest 1,000-game coach, outscoring Pat Riley, who needed 11 more games than Jackson.
Jackson again led the Lakers to the NBA Finals in 2009, beating the Utah Jazz, Houston Rockets, and Denver Nuggets in the playoff campaign.
The Lakers win the final 4-1 against the Orlando Magic, and Phil Jackson becomes the most successful coach in NBA history with ten league titles ahead of Red Auerbach, who coached the Boston Celtics.
In February 2010Jackson recorded his 534th win as Lakers coach, surpassing Pat Riley to become the coach with the most wins in franchise history. During the playoffs in 2010, they defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Utah Jazz, and Phoenix Suns before beating the Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals, which earned him his 11th title in the NBA as a coach and his fifth with the Lakers.
He announced on July 1, 2010, that he would stay with the Californians for the last season after having thought long and hard about the question and consulting his doctors about his health problems.
Phil Jackson retired after the Lakers were swept from the conference semifinal playoffs by the Dallas Mavericks‘ future NBA champions.
Phil Jackson – Front office career
In 2014, Phil Jackson chatted for months with the New York Knicks about a managerial role with the team.
In March, he was introduced as the Knicks’ president after signing a $ 60 million contract for five years. In April 2014, a week after the end of the season, Mike Woodson was fired by Jackson. The Knicks finished the season with 37-45 and finished 9th in the Eastern Conference.
At the beginning of the preseason, the Knicks hired Derek Fisher as a coach. He played for Jackson in LA and was a part of dynasty success. In January 2015, the Knicks set a franchise record with 13 straight losses.
That record was extended to 16 consecutive losses following the loss to the Milwaukee Bucks in London. They ended the season with the worst record in franchise history, with just 17 wins.
In June 2017, the Knicks officially announced a mutual decision to part ways with Phil Jackson. He was replaced by his former assistant, Steve Mills.
Did Phil Jackson invent the triangle?
No, the offense was invented by Chicago Bulls assistant Tex Winter. Phil Jackson made it famous all around the world with his teams.
Does the triangle offense still work?
Although teams use only some pieces of it in modern NBA, there is much evidence that the triangle can still work.
What NBA teams run the triangle offense?
Warriors and their head coach Steve Kerr still use it because Kerr played for Phil Jackson and knows how to implement it with his team.
