Why Phil Jackson deserves coach of the year

If you think back to training camp in 2007, all was not well in Laker Land.  They didn't land a big draft pick, not that he would've played much anyway as a rookie, more about that soon, there were no seemingly big free agent acquisitions, more about that soon as well, or trades, oh, and Kobe, their big star, the one they traded Vlade Divac for around ten years ago, was recorded in a parking lot dumping on the next child prodigy, Andrew Bynum.  The media circus that ensued looked like it would not only engulf the Lakers, but the entire NBA.  If you looked closely at Kobe on opening night against the Houston Rockets you could tell things were amiss in Camelot.  Cut to some cooling out of emotions and considerable improved play by a number of players, particularly the new child prodigy, Andrew Bynum, and voila, the ghost of Jerry West was temporarily quieted. Bynum's emergence was starting to take the shape everyone had hoped for and Derek Fisher was a real under-the- radar surprise with his calming influence, both on the court and in the locker room. And finally, Phil Jackson began allowing his youngest players to stay on the court and play through their mistakes, namely Jordan Farmar and Sasha Vujacic.  Jackson has always been known for preferring experienced players over younger ones.  It appears as some sort of hazing ritual they must endure by riding the pine for incredibly long periods and, when they finally get to play, they get the hook out of games quicker than open mic performers on stage at The Apollo Theater.  Quite frankly, Phil is very difficult coach for young players, but that doesn't mean they don't learn from him.  Until this season, I have never seen a young player play the game with any type of confidence under his auspices.      

     How could the Zen Master have gone up a level?  What does a guy who has won nine championships have to learn?  Apparently, his new approach has paid off.  The bench mob, which the Lakers' second unit has coined themselves, is made up of all the guys that normally couldn't stay on the court past their first turnover.  Luke Walton, an off and on again starter, is the only player that has earned the respect from his coach that allows him to play through his mistakes, and now that has been extended to the aforementioned Farmar, Vujacic, and Vladimir Radmonovic.  It is also worth noting that the same privelige was afforded to the child prodigy, Bynum, when it was evident that the shadow of Shaq was quickly turning to vapor at the Staples Center.  

    It is safe to say that Kobe's attitude towards his teammates, perhaps as much off the court as on, is a tremendous factor in Coach Jackson and the Lakers success this season.  Add to this the addition of Pau Gasol, the power forward scoring threat the team so desperately needed, and an increase in overall team basketball I.Q. that is hard to beat when every player is on the same page, and you have a recipe for the expectations the team is hearing loudly everywhere they travel.  What also strikes me as most extraordinary, is the plethora of injuries the team has suffered this season, and yet they still are within striking distance of the best record in the Western Conference with two weeks to go in the season.  

   I know the calming of a training camp circus is not enough of a reason to honor Jackson with a special award that could easily go to Byron Scott or Greg Popovich or that, just because the Zen Master realized, consciously or not, that he had another level to go before he reached enlightenment, should make him any more worthy.  But take a look at what they have done on the court this year, take a look at who is doing it, not just Kobe or Lamar, and take a look at the other coaches and see if they have been as battle tested this season as Mr. Jackson.  I think you will come to the same conclusion, the Zen Master deserves to sit on the Lotus Leaf by himself.