Phil Jackson Considering Knicks Front Office Job

According to ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith, legendary coach Phil Jackson is seriously considering a front-office job with the New York Knicks. That according to one of Smith’s sources, who is said to be very close to the team.

Madison Square Garden chairman James Dolan has reportedly met with Jackson already and is expecting a decision from the Hall of Fame coach next week. The exact nature of the position offered is not yet known, but it’s rumored to be the president of basketball operations, which would give him completely control of all basketball-related matters.

ESPN also reports that president and GM Steve Mills actually tried to get Jackson on board as the Knicks coach first, but he declined. Though he has won 11 titles as a head coach, it seems the 68-year-old Jackson has spent more than enough time behind the bench—something he’s said on more than one occasion since leaving the Los Angeles Lakers in 2011.

Considering the current state of affairs in New York, landing Jackson could provide a little hope if (and let’s face, when) Carmelo Anthony exits free agency after this season. After all, Jackson was a member of the two championship Knicks teams of the 70s—the only two championships in franchise history.

The NY Daily News notes the major “stumbling block would be Jackson’s ability to work with Dolan,” widely considered one of the most disagreeable and menacing owners in sports. Though Jackson will likely be promised full control, “the same was true of Donnie Walsh, an executive forced out” by Dolan after he hijacked the Carmelo Anthony negotiations years back.

Speaking of Anthony, that could be a sticking point. Apparently Dolan is seriously intent on re-signing him, but in the past Jackson has singled out Anthony and Amar’e Stoudemire as part of the reason the Knicks roster has been so “clumsy.”

Hopeful as it may seem, those are two very serious issues. It’s hard to imagine Dolan backing off and even harder to imagine Jackson being pushed around by such an incompetent boob.