Phil Jackson has made many statements in his recent book “Eleven Rings” that have surprised many people, especially casual NBA fans and analysts. One of the most surprising things that Jackson wrote was about his dislike for Lebron James. In chapter 15, entitled “Happens Every Season”, Jackson described a time when he was sitting on the bench during a timeout, watching big men Sasha Vujacic and LeBron James as they were sitting beside each other talking. Jackson claims that a “strong dislike” came over him for Lebron James. This dislike is something that has never been previously mentioned by Jackson, nor anyone else around the Lakers at the time. In his book, Phil does not provide an explanation as to why he disliked LeBron but instead talks about what strategy they used against him as a player.
Why did Phil Jackson not like lebron james?
Phil Jackson does not like Lebron James because he is a “coach killer”
A coach killer is one who gets their coach fired by not accepting the way they choose to run the team. Phil Jackson believes that James was a coach killer because he wanted to be traded from Cleveland after Dan Gilbert bought the team and did not want to play with rookie sensation Lebron James.
A coach can also get fired if their team does not like them or perceives them to be doing a bad job. Phil Jackson did not like Lebron James because he was “unforgiving” when it came to mistakes on the court, especially against the Lakers.
What did phil jackson say about lebron james?
In his book, Phil does not provide an explanation as to why he disliked LeBron but instead talks about what strategy they used against him as a player.
Phil Jackson seems to think that Lebron James is not coachable because he refused to accept the way Phil wanted him to play. Jackson believed that his coaching strategy was the reason the lakers were winning championships, but LeBron thought differently. He felt as though if he played his style of basketball, he would be able to help the team win championships.
However, despite not liking Lebron James for this reason, Phil Jackson can still admire his game as a player. He believes that LeBron is one of the most gifted players in NBA history and, if he could become coachable like Kobe Bryant was, he would be unstoppable on the court.
Kobe Bryant was, he would be unstoppable on the court.
In chapter 15, entitled “Happens Every Season”, Phil Jackson describes a time when he was sitting on the bench during a timeout, watching big men Sasha Vujacic and LeBron James as they were sitting beside each other talking.
He claims that a “strong dislike” came over him for Lebron James. This dislike is something that has never been previously mentioned by Jackson, nor anyone else around the Lakers at the time.
Phil Jackson thinks that LeBron James should be more humble because he was dealt a lot of advantages in life.
Jackson describes this time on the bench with Sasha Vujacic and LeBron James by saying, “. . . a strong dislike rose up in me. I envied how Sasha was able to sit so calmly beside this young superstar.” While he is trying to describe being envious of Sasha’s composure, it seems as though he is instead admitting to be envious of LeBron James and his basketball skill. He goes on to say, “in my career I had guarded everyone from Jordan to Malone, Ewing to O’Neal, but [James] gave me problems I had never encountered before.” Phil Jackson is known for being one of the best coaches in NBA history. In his book
Another reason why Phil Jackson doesn’t like lebron james is because he believes that it’s too much attention on him and too little on the team.
It is very interesting that Phil cannot even give an explanation as to why he “dislike” Lebron James yet knows exactly how he caused the Lakers problems on the court. It seems as though there was a personal problem between them rather than a difference in strategy, because Phil says himself that he wasn’t able to figure out LeBron’s game, but he knows exactly why he was difficult to guard.
This point can be made by noting how often people talk about Lebron James rather than the team. People so often mention James when discussing the Cleveland Cavaliers, but hardly ever talk about the team in general.
