Lakers coach Phil Jackson is ranked No. 4 on Sporting News Magazine's list of sports' 50 greatest coaches. He spoke with Sporting News Radio host Tim Montemayor on The Monty Show about his place on the list, his rivalry with Red Auerbach and his relationship with Kobe Bryant.
Q: What does it mean to be listed No. 4, behind John Wooden, Vince Lombardi and Paul Bryant?
A: Well that's a great group of guys to be in. Who's No. 5?
Q: Don Shula is No. 5, and he's won a championship or two as well ...
A: Yeah, that one year was unbelievable, and he had a great career. You know, I think of guys that coached were people of my teenage years when I watched them at their peak ... Bear Bryant, going from Kentucky (to Texas A&M) to Alabama. The story they've done on that was great. Obviously Vince Lombardi dying of cancer at a young age, it seemed like to us, and the legacy that he left with the Green Bay Packers-and fortunately I still use some of Vince Lombardi's material when I coach. And of course John Wooden, who's been a great teacher to all of us with his philosophies. So you know those are all great guys.
Q: Well, don't you want to know that Red Auerbach is No. 6?
A: Well, Red was such an influence in basketball; yes, I was curious as to where he landed. But he was a terrific coach and an even better people person. And I think more than anything else, that was one of his best qualities-and being a great general manager on top of being a great coach.
Q: Did we make too much of that in the media? Because you never wanted to talk about Red. Was there too much that was made about a rivalry, or were we pretty close on that?
A: There was a rivalry, and a very intense rivalry because I was a New York Knick and they were the Boston Celtics, and that was the tremendous rivalry in the '70s. It was almost like the Laker-Boston rivalry in the '80s. All these kids from New York would go to Boston for college, and they would come to the Knick games and fight with the Boston fans, and it was mayhem. And so it was a great rivalry, and Red never forgot that and our relationship in it.
Q: I hope that it's Lakers and Celtics in The Finals this upcoming year. Do you root for rivalry matchups for your guys?
A: You know, I don't. As a coach you just take whatever you get, and a lot of times you have to take the toughest thing around. … I know everyone wanted Cleveland this year because that was the matchup with the two personalities in LeBron (James) and Kobe. It didn't happen, but I think it really is the Celtics that people root for. My girlfriend, Jeanie Buss, that's the one she wants. She wants to see that rivalry reunited again.
Q: Why do you keep going? I mean, you've got 10. What makes you tick?
A: Well I'm a guy that wants to honor the contract, that's something that's an agreement between myself and the owner. I kind of did this at his behest. When I came back from my South Pacific hiatus and came back to a three-year contract, they kind of slid in a two-year option ... and I said, "OK, but I want to do it one year at a time, please." … And I have a relationship with Kobe Bryant that has now gone back for 10 years, and we've had a lot of great times in our relationship, and we've had some struggles. We've seen this team be rebuilt around Kobe's leadership, and I think this is a relationship that I have a hard time walking away from.
Q: Do you admire Kobe Bryant?
A: I certainly admire his ability to put his total effort behind what he does. I think that's something that makes him a special person. And those are things where you realize you have to have people like that to win a championship. You cannot have people that are only willing to give so much. They have to be able to give a whole lot, almost everything in their power to be able to get to this point.
Q: You seem to have the reputation as a guy who can handle a player like Ron Artest, maybe because you went through with Dennis Rodman. Are you different than any other coach in your abilities to handle guys like that?
A: I think a lot of coaches have tremendous ability, but this is what you have to do: You have to find a way to blend personalities together. … We've known that Ron has wanted to come to L.A. and play for the Lakers, and here's our opportunity to blend his talents and our talents together. I think he's going to work out just fine. He's a special player in a lot of different ways and exactly the type of player we'll need in our arsenal if we want to win again.
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