Stay away, Phil.
That’s the advice Marv Albert would have for Phil Jackson, who is likely to accept a front-office position with the Knicks. Albert said he believes the marriage would be doomed because of meddlesome owner James Dolan.
“No, no. Thrive would be not the word,” the TNT play-by-play man told The Post.
“Phil, as it is, is an anti-establishment guy. He’s a free spirit, he says whatever is on his mind and he is a fascinating guy. Dolan might promise him that he’ll leave him alone, there’ll be a honeymoon period, [but] there’s no way that can last. … It would be very difficult for Phil to work in the environment that is set up at the Garden. That’s the most succinct way I can put it.”
Albert has his own history with Dolan and MSG. He was the voice of the team for 37 years starting in 1967, but was let go by Dolan in 2004 due to his on-air criticism of the team. It was pointed out the chatty Donnie Walsh spent four years in New York, helping rebuild the roster, in a similar role to what Jackson would assume. Walsh stepped down as GM in 2011, months after the blockbuster trade for Carmelo Anthony that is widely believed to have been engineered by Dolan.
“Why’d he leave? Everybody leaves. There’s a reason. Dolan’s [the reason],” Albert said at a press conference in Midtown previewing the NCAA tournament coverage by Turner and CBS.
“It’s very difficult under those conditions. People can’t talk to the media, and they really need a front person because they put it all on Mike Woodson whenever anything happens and that’s wrong. The coach shouldn’t have to deal with these other issues. It should be the general manager or the owner of the team.”
Jackson and the Knicks are reportedly hammering out the financial and job-description details of an agreement. But Albert sees other obstacles for Jackson besides Dolan’s influence.
“He has to be in New York. Even though he’d be more basketball overseer than general manager, and he really has not done that type of job, I just can’t see him being in California and I am sure he’ll be back and forth, but he doesn’t like to travel,” he said.
“That was one of the reasons he doesn’t like coaching. I just don’t think that works in the long run.”
Whoever takes over the job will take over a roster with major question marks and huge decisions ahead, starting with Woodson’s future and Carmelo Anthony’s expected move into free agency. The Post reported Albert’s NCAA tournament broadcast partner Steve Kerr would be Jackson’s favorite to take over as coach. Kerr said Tuesday he is interested in coaching, but was “uncomfortable” talking about the Knicks job, given that Woodson is currently the coach.
“And if Phil does come, it’s a team that’s way over the salary cap, a team that doesn’t have a No. 1 pick,” Albert said. “It’s a team with a roster that as Phil has said, is very clumsy. It’s a complete turnover. See what happens with Carmelo. I don’t know if that’s Phil’s type of player.”