When Phil Jackson disappeared to Montana last May, leaving a disappointing Los Angeles Lakers team behind, nobody would have predicted that the next time we’d take in the musings of the Zen Master would be on opening night of the NFL’s football season. Heck, back in May few knew when the opening night of the NFL season would actually take place due to their own lockout, so who would guess at something nutty like that.

Phil is back, though, and via ClutchFans.net, he’s behind the wheel of an Audi A8, and coming to the aid of beleaguered servers everywhere:

Again, we’re not typically keen on showcasing advertisements here at BDL, but it’s Phil Jackson and Audi. They gave us the Quattro, which short of the triangle offense is the greatest thing ever.

And it’s good to see Phil again. Even if he’s giving us the first #Humblebrag of the fall television season.

Related: Los Angeles Lakers, Video

That’s all the news for today.

There is the quick update of the day.

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LOS ANGELES (AFP) – The Los Angeles Lakers have said they are close to finalizing a deal with Mike Brown to succeed Phil Jackson as the National Basketball Association team’s new head coach.

“In response to rampant speculation and reports about our head coaching position and Mike Brown, we’ve met with Mike and are very impressed with him,” Lakers spokesman John Black said Wednesday.

“In addition, we have an outline for an agreement in place and hope to sign a contract within the next few days.”

Former Cleveland Cavaliers coach Brown, 41, works as a television analyst at ESPN which first reported that a deal was close.

The Los Angeles Times reported Wednesday that Brown was expected to sign a contract late Wednesday or Thursday.

The Times said the deal could be worth between $4 million and $4.5 million a season and good for four years with an option.

Brown was interviewed on ESPN during half time of the Dallas Mavericks’ Western Conference finals victory over Oklahoma City.

He said he had already traded text messages with Lakers superstar Kobe Bryant, who had endorsed Phil Jackson assistant coach Brian Shaw for the top job.

Brown said he was “looking forward to getting to know Kobe and being able to work with him to go and get us a championship,” he said.

Shaw had been a favored candidate of many Lakers players, but Derek Fisher said via Twitter Wednesday that he was looking forward to working with Brown.

“Will miss Phil but excited to start a new chapter under Mike Brown,” Fisher said on the micro-blogging site. “Looking forward to a different style and energy!!”

In Los Angeles, Brown faces the difficult challenge of replacing coaching icon Jackson, who had 11 championship rings with Los Angeles and the Chicago Bulls, and last season led the Lakers to their 16th NBA title in franchise history.

Jackson retired after the Lakers were eliminated by Dallas in the second round of this year’s playoffs.

Brown was head coach of the Cavaliers for five seasons until he was fired last year. In 2009, he was named the NBA’s coach of the year.

The Cavaliers made it to the 2007 NBA finals but were eliminated in four straight games by San Antonio.

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By
Erik Matuszewski
-

Wed May 25 23:14:12 GMT 2011

That’s all for today guys, i’ll be back to blog you tomorrow.

LOS ANGELES – A person with knowledge of the discussions says the Los Angeles Lakers have reached a deal in principle with former Cleveland coach Mike Brown to succeed Phil Jackson.

The person spoke to The Associated Press on Wednesday on condition of anonymity because the Lakers hadn’t made the official announcement.

ESPN, which employed Brown as an analyst this season, first reported Brown had been hired.

Brown emerged as the front-runner for the daunting task of succeeding the 11-time NBA champion Jackson after a strong interview last weekend with the Lakers, who apparently are looking for a new approach after an abrupt end to their championship reign.

Jackson retired after the Dallas Mavericks ousted the defending two-time champion Lakers.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Los Angeles Lakers are in serious talks with former Cleveland coach Mike Brown about their coaching vacancy, according to a person with knowledge of the discussions.

The person spoke to The Associated Press early Wednesday on condition of anonymity because the Lakers’ coaching search wasn’t complete yet.

ESPN, which employed Brown as an analyst this season, reported later Wednesday that Brown had been hired. The Lakers made no announcement, and Brown didn’t immediately return a phone call.

Brown emerged as the front-runner for the daunting task of succeeding Phil Jackson after a strong interview last weekend with the Lakers, who apparently are looking for a new approach after an abrupt end to their championship reign.

Jackson, the 11-time NBA champion coach, retired earlier this month after the Dallas Mavericks ousted the defending two-time champion Lakers from the second round of the playoffs.

Although Kobe Bryant endorsed Jackson assistant coach Brian Shaw for the vacancy, Jim Buss — the Lakers’ executive vice president of player personnel and the son of owner Jerry Buss — appears more interested in Brown. A respected young tactician with a strong coaching pedigree, Brown also has ample experience in big games, even if he couldn’t guide LeBron James to a title.

“I think it’s great,” James said in Miami, where he’s preparing for Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals.

The 41-year-old Brown led the Cavaliers to the 2007 NBA finals and won 272 games in five years, becoming the most successful coach in franchise history while compiling the league’s best regular-season record in each of his last two seasons.

But the 2009 NBA coach of the year was fired last spring following the Cavs’ dissension-filled exit from the second round of the postseason, and James left for Miami a few weeks later.

Although James was critical of Brown’s strategies during their final playoff run together, the two-time NBA MVP strongly endorsed his former coach.

“Mike Brown is a great coach,” James said. “He brought us success that we hadn’t had before in that city, and it started with his defensive concepts. He brought in a defensive mindset that we didn’t have. Fifty-plus wins, he was coach of the year, he got us to the (NBA) finals, won us the Eastern Conference finals … because of him and his coaching staff. I respect him. He definitely helped me become who I am today.”

Brown’s background in defense apparently intrigues the Lakers, whose last two title runs were built on sturdy defense led by Bryant and 7-foot shot-blocker Andrew Bynum, a favorite of Jim Buss. Brown is a former assistant to San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich and Dallas coach Rick Carlisle, who employed Brown as his defensive coordinator in Indiana when Lakers forward Ron Artest was named the NBA’s top defensive player.

Brown’s reputation as an offensive coach was savaged during his time with the Cavaliers, who often appeared to be running a 1-on-5 scheme for James.

During an interview with Sirius XM Radio on Tuesday, Jerry Buss said his club was “very close” to hiring Jackson’s replacement. Buss also said the Lakers “won’t continue exclusively with the triangle” offense championed by Jackson.

The Lakers also have shown interest in veteran coach Rick Adelman, who left the Houston Rockets last month, and Mike Dunleavy, the former Lakers and Clippers coach. Adelman is thought to be the Lakers’ second choice after Brown because his experience could attract the attention of a veteran roster.

Shaw, a former Lakers guard and a top assistant coach during Jackson’s tenure, was the favorite candidate among the current Lakers, with Derek Fisher and Bynum joining Bryant in throwing their support behind their former teammate.

But the Buss family has a history of idiosyncratic coaching hires, often from outside the organization. When Jackson left the Lakers for a year in 2004, they replaced him with former Houston coach Rudy Tomjanovich, who resigned midway through his only season because of health issues.

Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak has said the club is likely to return with largely the same veteran core that won the past two NBA titles before falling short this season. Los Angeles already has more than $85 million in salary committed to eight players for next season, likely meaning the Lakers will have the NBA’s largest payroll again next season.

___

AP Sports Writer Tim Reynolds in Miami contributed to this report.

That’s all for today.

May. 25, 2011 10:36 AM
Associated Press

That’s all the news for today.

Jerry Buss is still the owner of the Los Angeles Lakers.

But he’s not the guy pulling the strings anymore, the power shift to son Jim Buss is pretty much complete.

According to the Los Angeles Times, the move to set up and hire former Cleveland Cavaliers coach Mike Brown was the younger Buss’ call.

Brown, 41, became the front-runner because Jim Buss, the team’s executive vice president of player personnel, was impressed with his defense-minded style.

Former Houston Rockets coach Rick Adelman also was in the mix for the job and will remain a candidate to replace Phil Jackson if Brown turns down the deal from the Lakers.

Jim Buss, who had a reputation as a playboy in his younger days, runs the basketball side of the operations while his sister Jeanie (outgoing coach Phil Jackson’s girlfriend) runs the business side of the Lakers. Jerry Buss still has the last say on everything, but his role is greatly diminished. He did not even attend the Lakers victory parade last year, instead being spotted playing poker in a local card club. Still, it can be a little like Kremlinology to figure out who is running what inside the Lakers organization. This is a clear sign.

Jim Buss also made the call to hire Rudy Tomjanovich last time Phil Jackson stepped away from the organization. That ended poorly, with Tomjanovich leaving midway through the season and eventually Jackson having to be brought back to calm season ticket holders. The good news is that Brown has already coached in a high-pressure circus and should be better prepared for the Lakers gig in that sense.

This hiring is not sitting well with Lakers fans, who remember Brown’s stagnant offenses in Cleveland. Things were not as bad as they appeared there, that was a matter of the players on the roster around LeBron James to a degree. Still, the execution of the Xs and Os was an issue under Brown before.

But Jim Buss wants him, so he is the man.

That’s all for today guys, i’ll be back to blog you tomorrow.

Updated May 25, 2011 2:51 AM ET

The Los Angeles Lakers are set to name ex-Cavs coach Mike Brown as Phil Jackson’s replacement, Comcast SportsNet reported Tuesday citing sources.

According to the report, Brown is expected to sign a four-year deal worth $18 million.

The Lakers held informal discussions with up to 12 candidates, including long-time assistant Brian Shaw, who was publicly endorsed by stars Kobe Bryant and Derek Fisher.

Brown was also considered a frontrunner for the vacant Golden State Warriors job and a candidate for the Indiana post.

He and the Lakers were discussing salary and the length of the contract on Tuesday, Yahoo! Sports reported citing sources.

The Los Angeles Times has reported that whoever replaced Jackson would not earn anywhere near the salary paid to the 11-time NBA championship-winning coach.

Jackson, who retired after the Lakers were swept by the Mavericks in the Western Conference semi-finals, earned as much as $12 million in 2009-10 and, after a pay cut, $10 million last season.

The Times said the new coach should only expect to earn between $3 million and $5 million a year.

Brown was fired in 2010 afters five seasons in Cleveland, where he went 272-138 and reached the NBA finals in 2007.

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Former Los Angeles Lakers head coach Phil Jackson made $10 million last season, a pay cut from the $12 million he made the season before. Still, not too shabby.

The Los Angeles Times reports that the Lakers have yet to pare down a short list of coaching candidates, but one thing that is known is that the team isn’t planning to shell out the kind of dough it gave Jackson for his part in bringing two titles to Tinseltown since joining the team in 2005.

The Times reports that whoever takes over in L.A. will be making between $3 million and $5 million annually, which is still more than the average NBA head coach salary of $2 million to $4 million.

The candidates for the job listed by the paper are Rick Adelman, Mike Dunleavy, Jeff Van Gundy, Mike Brown(notes) and Lakers assistant Brian Shaw.

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Source: Los Angeles Times

Related: Mike Brown

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