NBA Rumors: Knicks Pursuing Phil Jackson

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Phil Jackson has made it clear that he doesn’t want to coach anymore. Instead, he wants to follow in Pat Riley’s footsteps and make the transition to the front office.

It’s unclear what position the Knicks are offering Jackson within their front office, but bringing in such an excellent basketball mind can only help the organization. It would also help them during this crucial span over the next several years when they’ll be trying to attract star players to New York to play alongside (or replace) Carmelo Anthony.

Jackson, who is 68, has history with the Knicks organization as they were the team that drafted him back in 1967 and he played with the franchise through 1978. The two titles that Jackson won as a player came during his time with the Knicks.

Jackson has reportedly had similar conversations with other organizations, so the Knicks may have some competition for his services. With that said, it sounds like he’s mulling the offer and a decision is expected in the next several days.

This seems like wishful thinking on Kobe Bryant’s part. Multiple league sources have told Basketball Insiders that Pau Gasol has already started looking into potential free agency destinations and weighing his other options. He’s not hiding the fact that he’s going to test the market this summer and see what is out there.

Rival executives believe that Gasol is going to walk away from the Lakers this summer, which isn’t a huge surprise considering what has transpired over the last two years. Gasol’s relationship with Mike D’Antoni has been an issue for quite awhile and it’s unlikely the veteran big man will want to be a part of the the Lakers’ rebuilding effort since he’s turning 34 years old this summer and in the final stages of his career.

The Lakers may not be interested in bringing back Gasol either, since they are clearly looking toward the future and throwing significant money at an aging Gasol wouldn’t make much sense. While it’s not totally out of the question, it does seem unlikely that Gasol will be back with the Lakers next season.

It’s good to hear that Noel is progressing, but nobody should get their hopes up that he’s going to play this season.

The Sixers have no reason to put Noel on the floor now, since the team isn’t competing for anything (besides more ping pong balls).

They have every reason to keep Noel benched throughout the remainder of the year, mainly so that he is completely healthy when he makes his NBA debut and so that the team can continue to tank as according to plan.

In a different situation, Noel may have already made his NBA debut, but Philadelphia is taking things as slowly as possible for obvious reasons. Noel will likely play his first NBA game during the 2014-15 season.