I haven’t really talked a lot about Phil Jackson through my discussions about The Last Dance. It’s about time to talk about the maverick…
I like the brief look back at his playing career, which was preceded by his treatment of Rodman. The comment was that Phil played a lot like Dennis did; maybe that’s one of the reasons they got along the way they did. They talked about the Native American connection; they mentioned Phil taking acid, after showing Dennis on his Vegas jaunt. They were both characters.
I’m a big believer in the way Phil handled Dennis, and for that matter, all the egos he was dealing with on that team. A good leader knows that you can’t treat everybody the same; on the surface, that sounds like a pretty solid way to go. But, what’s more important than being consistent, is being fair. What works for one person, may not be best for another. You take every situation, every individual, and make what you feel is the best decision based on those specifics; you don’t just follow a playbook/rule book and apply it to everyone like they’re just a number. You embrace the individuality of your team members; you understand that when people are themselves, they are their best selves. I think Phil Jackson and Joe Maddon would get along well. Giving Dennis a breather was smart; easy to say now, sure. But understanding what he needed, and allowing it in order to get the best out of him in the long term, was brilliant leadership.
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A big thing that Phil had going for him was Tex Winter; we shouldn’t forget about Johnny Bach and the doberman defense either. Another good sign of a leader is not feeling like you have to or want to be the smartest person in the room, but instead, surrounding yourself with people that are smarter than you. Tex Winter was an offensive genius with that triangle offense. It’s called fundamentals baby; that’s real basketball. Implementing this system, listening to Tex was one of the smartest things Phil did.
I appreciate Phil; when you make the Mount Rushmore of Chicago coaches, Phil is front and center. Without him, would the Bulls have won all these titles? I’m not saying he was more important than MJ; never that. But he certainly was a huge part of the dynasty. Thanks Phil. 4 more episodes to re-watch before the finale…
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