Phil Jackson Knicks Job Is Not As A Coach! Zen Master Is Tasked With 'Saving' Big Apple Franchise With 'Full Control' Of Basketball Operations!

The greatest coach in NBA history is reportedly close to joining the New York Knicks in a position the Los Angeles Lakers could not give him.

He is not coaching this time-he will run all the operations of the team including, but not limited to, personnel and roster decisions.

ESPN quoted a source saying that it's a "done" deal:

"Everything is pretty much done. There are just some little things here and there that need to be worked out, but the Knicks are very confident that this is essentially done."

There were some observers who were insinuating that Jackson was just using the Knicks as leverage to gain a position with the Los Angeles Lakers. But we must not forget that the Knicks are actually the team that drafted him as a player way back in 1967(Basketball Reference.com). Ending his NBA career as a Knick makes the circle complete, in a way, because that's where it all started.

Jerry West, the Lakers GM who worked with Phil when he assembled the Lakers team starring Shaq and Kobe, believes that Phil can be good at this new field. From The NY Post: "I think if he has the wherewithal to understand that these jobs are difficult, that they're frustrating and he's not going to be able to coach the players unless he wants to, I'm sure he could do a great job."

However, ESPN warns that the 'full control' aspect may be a misnomer. Chris Broussard writes: "While Knicks owner James Dolan will pay Jackson handsomely to make basketball decisions, Dolan is still expected to maintain a voice in terms of decision-making, the source said. Bringing Jackson aboard could move the Knicks away from their ties to Creative Artists Agency, the player- and coach-representation firm that many league insiders, including some Knicks players, believe has an inordinate amount of influence within the franchise.

Assistant general manager Allan Houston, coach Mike Woodson, player personnel director Mark Warkentien and star forward Carmelo Anthony are all CAA clients.

One Knicks player recently told ESPN.com that the CAA ties were a problem in the locker room.

'You see how guys from CAA are treated differently,' the player said. 'How they get away with saying certain things to coaches. How coaches talk to them differently than they talk to the other guys. It's a problem.'"

Does coaching success translate to executive success? Precedents are rare, but it's possible. Phil Jackson is the Zen Master, after all.