The history of Phil Jackson's harsh dismissal from the Lakers

The Lakers have had some of the best coaches in NBA history. However, maybe the best coach they ever were was Phil Jackson. The Lakers hired Jackson after he was fired from the Chicago Bulls after a three-peat in what now it’s known as the ‘Last Dance’. After only one year he brought the Lakers back to the top.

Jackson coached the Los Angeles Lakers from 1999 to 2004 on his first tenure with the team. He would come back to coach the team once again from 2005 to 2011, the team won five league titles under his leadership. However, in 2004, Jerry Buss decided to fire Phil Jackson.

More Lakers news

This is why the Lakers decided to trade Shaquille O'Neal

The new 'spare parts' plan the Lakers will try to trade for

"So it's the end of the season and Phil [Jackson] went to meet with my dad. ... Phil went in and said, 'You can't trade Shaq, he's the most dominant player in the league.' And my dad said, 'I'm gonna trade him, but it won't matter to me because you're not coming back as a coach either,'” explained Jeanie Buss in an interview for SiriusXM NBA Radio.

That same offseason the Lakers traded Shaq to the Miami Heat. Without the two the Lakers would go on to have a mediocre season as they went 34-48, missing the playoffs for the first time in 11 years. In the end, the Lakers brought back Jackson to undo their mistake.

Phil Jackson’s resume 

Phil Jackson won 11 NBA titles as a coach surpassing the previous record of nine set by Red Auerbach. He also had a winning record every year as a head coach, and currently has the highest winning percentage of any Hall of Fame coach and the highest of any NBA coach with 500 games or more.