Former NBA player and coach turned ESPN NBA analyst Mark Jackson isn’t a fan of what Phil Jackson has done as president of the New York Knicks.
In a conference call with reporters ahead of the 2017 NBA Finals, Jackson made his thoughts on Jackson as an NBA executive crystal clear.
Citing Jackson’s handling of the Carmelo Anthony situation as a key reason for calling him “a failure” as an executive, the former coach ripped into the Zen Master for “going about it the wrong way to force him out.”
Mark Jackson, on a conference call to promote ESPN/ABC's Finals coverage, says Phil Jackson has been "a failure thus far." More: pic.twitter.com/uwxkhUFkcm
— Ian Begley (@IanBegley) May 30, 2017
Really, there aren’t many who’d argue against Jackson on this score. Phil Jackson has done a miserable job as the head honcho in New York. His personnel moves have not panned out, and his decisions on the head coaching front have been embarrassingly inept.
But as Jackson pointed out, it’s what has transpired surrounding Anthony that brings the most shame upon the organization. Anthony has given his all for the city he loves and has even evolved his game to include teammates more than he has in years past. Most agree that, of the two, Jackson is much more to blame for the way things currently sit, including an NBA Hall of Famer.
The proof is in the pudding. The Knicks have won no more than 32 games in any season since Jackson took over. He still is pushing his archaic Triangle offense onto his players and is alienating his best young talent, Kristaps Porzingis.
Things aren’t going to change any time soon, either, meaning one of the best head coaches in history may end up as one of its worst executives before he’s done.