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Jackson relieved to be out of Lakers soap opera
Former Los Angeles Lakers coach Phil Jackson intentionally sabotaged his contract talks before turning down a job as the club's vice-president, the Los Angeles media reported on Monday. Jackson, who led the Lakers to three NBA titles in five years, said he scuttled negotiations with owner Jerry Buss by demanding US$10 million more per season. Buss announced he was suspending contract extension talks in February. "I am happy I left," Jackson told the Los Angeles Times. "It looks like the right time to leave. "I felt I was indifferent and diametrically opposed to the direction they were going, so I thought taking that position (vice-president) wasn't forthright and honest." Speaking in a wide-ranging interview Jackson also touched on Kobe Bryant's free agency, Shaquille O'Neal's likely trade to Miami, an interfering owner and the infighting that tore the team apart. The Lakers hired Rudy Tomjanovich on Sunday to replace Jackson who was not asked back after Los Angeles lost to Detroit in the NBA finals last month. Jackson knew he wouldn't be returning when owner Jerry Buss suspended the negotiations. "He (Buss) made up his mind early in the year and he was very comfortable with the direction the team was going to go," said Jackson, whose is dating Buss' daughter Jeanie. "I was disappointed at the way it was executed. It makes the organization look fumbling. "They wanted to make some moves to accommodate signing Kobe (Bryant). We knew they probably wouldn't work if I was coaching the team." Jackson said he met with Buss on June 18 and talked to him once more before getting in his car Sunday to drive to his lakeside home in the Montana mountains. Jackson's resume is impressive with nine championships in 14 NBA seasons. He has a win-loss record of 832-316 and 175-69 in the playoffs. "I don't anticipate coaching," Jackson said. "I wouldn't rule it out. But I don't anticipate I will. I may coach a group of AAU kids somewhere, but I am not going to solicit an NBA job." Jackson described Bryant as a difficult player to please. Bryant once sobbed in the bathroom while his teammates celebrated a championship with champagne in the dressing room. "A championship wasn't enough to make Kobe happy," Jackson said. "I noticed it wasn't enough. It was OK. It was a notch in his belt. But it wasn't his end result." Jackson said he and Bryant parted on good terms. "I wished him well and hoped he'd find happiness with a team." |
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