Phil Jackson in the Midst of Coaching Rumors

Although Phil Jackson insists that he will retire at the end of the season, his girlfriend has told reporters otherwise. Two teams who have apparently indirectly reached out to Jackson to fill coaching vacancies are the Chicago Bulls and New Jersey Nets. Jackson began his coaching career in New Jersey where he served as a player/assistant for the last two years of his career. Chicago could be a tempting option for Jackson considering he won six championships with the Bulls in the nineties. However, Jackson has been quoted as saying that if he coaches anywhere next year, he is ninety percent sure that it will be with the Los Angeles Lakers, his current team. A fourth team that Jackson's name has been associated with is the Cleveland Cavaliers due to the recent firing of Mike Brown. Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert has shown that he will be willing to spend any amount of money to keep LeBron James in Cleveland. If I had to assign percentages to the various coaching possibilities they would look like this:

Chicago Bulls: 10% The ONLY reason that I could see Jackson coaching again in Chicago is if LeBron James decides to play for the Bulls next season. Jackson has done a marvelous job with superstars (6 championships with Michael Jordan and 4 championships with Kobe Bryant), and LeBron could be his next big player.

Cleveland Cavaliers: 5% This possibility is based on LeBron staying in Cleveland. Why is it lower than Chicago if it is based on the same player? Jackson has never coached in Cleveland, and he had a large amount of success in Chicago.

Los Angeles Lakers: 85% Jackson is loved in Los Angeles. Although he would have to take a pay cut of nearly seven million dollars next year, he has a great relationship with Kobe Bryant, Lamar Odom, Derek Fisher, and the other players for the Lakers. Also, the Lakers will be championship contenders for the next five years, and Jackson wouldn't leave that situation.

New Jersey Nets: 0% Jackson is a proven winner. New Jersey is not. This combination would not work because at this point in his career Jackson would not accept a coaching job that would not give him an immediate chance to win.

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Mike Brown Fired

The Cleveland Cavaliers and Mike Brown era has ended. Brown was the head coach of the organization for the past five years, but he failed to win a championship with Cleveland so he was fired earlier today. This move was expected after the Cavaliers' early exit from the playoffs due to the Boston Celtics. How does this affect the LeBron James sweepstakes? By firing Mike Brown, the Cavaliers have all but said "we will do whatever you want in order to keep you". This will allow LeBron to hand pick his next head coach if he decides to remain in Cleveland.

There are four main options for the Cavaliers' next head coach. However, none of these names will be brought in unless LeBron James approves them based on the stipulation that he will sign with Cleveland this offseason. The front-runner at this point is Avery Johnson, formerly the head coach of the Dallas Mavericks. Johnson is currently an NBA analyst, but he has expressed interest in returning to the NBA this next season. Byron Scott, the former New Orleans Hornets head coach, is also a proven winner and has experience. Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski is also an option, and he has a history with LeBron through coaching the recent gold medal team at the Olympics. The fourth option for Cleveland is Tom Izzo of Michigan State. However, I believe that Izzo will stay with the Spartans just as I believe that Krzyzewski will remain the head coach of the Duke Blue Devils next season. Although many college coaches are always considered for head coaching jobs in the NBA, few make the jump, and even fewer are successful. Look for Johnson, Scott, or a different coach to be calling the shots for the Cavaliers next season.

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