phil talking about the job.

12.24.04 (ny times)
Phil Jackson has far too much respect for Lenny Wilkens to aggressively campaign for the Knicks coaching job. But he doesn’t have nearly enough respect for Lenny to refuse to talk to the New York Times’ Howard Beck about it.

“There’s a process teams go through to put themselves in a competitive place,” Jackson said in a telephone interview. “And when they get to that position, I felt like if they want me to coach that team, I’d have to listen to them, because of my connections in New York and my connections as a Knick. But I certainly don’t want to step in and muddy the water around Lenny Wilkens. He’s a great coach. I’m very respectful of him.”

This is at least the second time Jackson has acknowledged interest in coaching the Knicks since leaving the Los Angeles Lakers after last season. In October, he told The New York Post that he would listen if the Knicks called. But he has been careful not to lobby openly for the job, and he has no plans to return to the N.B.A. this season.

“They have one of the great coaches in the game at their helm right now,” Jackson said, referring to Wilkens.

If he returns to the N.B.A., Jackson wants to coach a team that has a chance to contend for a championship within a few years. He ruled out any wholesale-rebuilding efforts.

“It has to be a challenge,” he said. “The team that has a glimmer of hope, that has potential, where you have a challenge that’s out there and an opportunity, I think is what every coach wants. You want to think you have an opportunity to win.”

and some professionalism exhibited by isiah while lenny was still the head coach and under contract:

12.25.04 Lenny Responds To Phil’s Knicks Interest, Shaq Preserves His Brain
From Marc Berman in today’s NY Post :

It has been simmering inside him for a couple of months now, and Lenny Wilkens finally let Phil Jackson have it.

In October, The Post quoted Jackson saying he would listen to the Knicks if they approached him to coach. A published report yesterday regurgitated The Post’s story, with Jackson again saying he could be interested in the Knick job this summer.

Knicks president Isiah Thomas reacted to The Post’s story two months ago, calling Jackson “an attractive candidate.”

Asked yesterday about Jackson, Wilkens spat, “I couldn’t care less what’s in the paper about Phil Jackson. Really. That’s his thing. I don’t worry about stuff like that.”

When asked if it were against coaching etiquette to address a position that is not vacant, Wilkens said, “Most coaches don’t.”

but phil ultimately returned to lala land.

Phil Jackson is returning to the Los Angeles Lakers following a reconciliation with the team that cut him loose last year after three NBA championships in five seasons.

"This is something I never thought could possibly happen," Jackson said at a Staples Center news conference. "It's a pleasure to come back."

"One of the reasons why I've returned is the support has been so tremendous in this city," he said. "It is a town that truly supports its team and has a tremendous amount of affection for it."

Jackson spoke to several other teams, including the New York Knicks, but made it clear he would make a decision on the Lakers' job before giving serious consideration to anyone else.

"He was a long shot for us anyway," said a source in the Knicks' front office who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Lakers coach Phil Jackson said it was too early to judge the Knicks' trade for Eddy Curry, however. "You can't tell in basketball for a half-dozen years or so whether the move was correct, because there's always other things that weigh in there," he said. "But he is talented." Although Jackson was intrigued by the idea of returning to New York, he said he had reservations about the intense news media scrutiny. "The people that cover the team are like double you guys and twice as nasty," Jackson told the Los Angeles reporters. "They're snakes, just nasty, and the innuendos. Those things, I knew I was going to be able to live without."

phil passed on us.

He got the better deal with L.A. We couldn't offer him what he wanted as far as a steak of the franchise. The whole thing with Phil has just been very bad timing. We had a shot the first time, but we believed in JVG. The second time, L.A. gave him a piece of the pie, plus his girlfriend wanted him there, if I remember correctly. I don't blame Phil for not wanting to put up with the press here in New York. We'll live without him.

Stake. Now he's a vegi again.