Phil Jackson to Leave Los Angeles Lakers over pay cut
In a perfect world when a team finds all the right pieces that it needs to not only be competitive, but be in the running for a championship year in and year out that they would do anything and everything possible in order to keep all the pieces there. When it comes to the business aspect of professional sports keeping everyone is not always possible.
Sometimes players just become too expensive to keep. They may still be among the best, but just be asking for more money than the club is willing to commit. Often times they are aging stars that still wish to be paid like they use to even though they are no longer the player they once were.
Just like with players, a team cannot always hold onto its coaching staff like it wants to. As assistants prove their worth they often move onto the head coaching ranks for more money (and responsibility). In some cases, the team decides that it just does not want to pay the price tag that a coach may require anymore.
That appears to be the case with one of the most successful head coaches in NBA history, Phil Jackson.
Phil Jackson The man, the myth, the legend
A review of what Phil Jackson has accomplished makes it seem like arguing over his salary would be foolish. There are few that can say they have come even close to matching the standard that Jackson has set.
His resume is impressive to say the least. Between his stays with the Chicago Bulls and the Los Angeles Lakers he has coached in the NBA Finals 12 times, winning 10 (6 with Chicago and 4 with Los Angeles). In 1996 he was named Coach of the Year. No other coach has won as many conference championships as he has nor had as many wins in the playoffs either. The 72 wins by his Bulls in 1996 set a record for most in NBA history in a single season. Jackson also set the record for most wins in a season for both the Lakers and the Bulls.
His worth is probably most evident in his absence. After winning three championship titles in a row, the Lakers were beaten in the conference semi-final round by the Spurs in 2003, and then in the NBA Finals in 2004. Shortly after the end of the 2004 season, team officials announced that Jackson would not be coming back for the 2004-05 season. It would be the first time since the 1993-94 season that the Lakers would find themselves sitting at home once the post season started.
He was rehired prior to the start of the 2005-06 season. The Lakers were back in the post season that year and in the NBA Finals in two (winning it in three).
Time for a pay cut for Phil Jackson
Jackson is in the last year of his contract that has him getting paid $12.5 million this season. Reports have Jackson already engaged in contract talks with the team even though they are in the midst of a playoff run.
According to some reports that have already been made, Jackson will be looking at a substantial pay cut if he decides to stay with the Lakers next season. Jackson has been aware that a pay cut would be a possibility next season as early as mid-December 2009. In his comments, Jackson mentioned he is aware of the desire by teams across the league to cut costs. When asked if he would take the pay cut he responded with a question of his own: “Would you?”
Supposedly the team is not going to be willing to pay more than $5 million to retain his services for the 2010-11 season. His girlfriend and daughter of team owner Dr. Jerry Buss thinks that money will not be an issue if the Lakers win the NBA Finals this year because he will want to go for a three-peat. If not, she is confident that he will be coaching somewhere, if not in Los Angeles.
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