Buss Might Be Ready to Consider Rehiring

The magic number for why Phil Jackson is such an attractive coaching candidate for the Lakers isn’t nine -- as in nine championship rings.

It’s 20. For Laker owner Jerry Buss, it’s better to be quizzed about rehiring Jackson than grilled for trading Shaquille O’Neal, and in Buss’ one-hour session with newspaper and radio reporters Wednesday, there were 20 Jackson- and coaching-related questions before he was asked: “Looking back, do you regret trading Shaquille O’Neal?”

As long as Jackson’s name is in the mix -- or better yet, he’s on the sidelines -- the Lakers can avoid discussion of the ill-advised trade and the calamitous season that followed. It’s only by going retro and bringing Jackson back that the Lakers can move ahead.

(For the record, no regret by Buss. “Not at all,” he said).

After Buss played host to Jackson in his luxury suite for a Laker game and took him to dinner, not to mention all of the, uh, personal contact Laker executive vice president Jeanie Buss has had with Jackson, the Lakers might even formally talk to him about their coaching vacancy.

“I think that’s going to get pretty close now,” Buss said. “A few days.”

Buss’ answers were like one of those Magic Eye pictures. At first they didn’t provide much of an answer, but focus long and hard enough and you could see the image of Jackson sitting on the Laker bench next year.

Buss said the Lakers would like a big-name coach.

“But only because the fact he is a name coach has indicated past success,” Buss said. “I don’t know if I want to take a gamble on someone who hasn’t had a lot of past success.”

If success is defined as winning championships, only four coaches have qualified since 1991: Jackson, Larry Brown, Gregg Popovich ... and the man who started this whole Phil fantasy by quitting as Laker coach in February, Rudy Tomjanovich. So scratch one right away. Popovich has the sport’s best trio (Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker) locked up long-term in San Antonio and isn’t about to leave.

Buss said the Lakers would “pay something relatively close to” $10 million a year for their next coach. Jackson and Brown are the only coaches who could command that type of paper. So much for Flip Saunders.

Buss also said that he expected the Lakers to be close to naming a coach by the time he leaves for his European vacation May 15.

Even though you can’t tell by the dark building at 11th and Figueroa, the NBA playoffs are underway and Brown is coaching the Detroit Pistons in them. He’ll probably be busy at least through the end of May.

There’s also the small matter that Brown is under contract to Detroit for three more seasons. An NBA source said that Piston owner Bill Davidson would demand compensation, probably in the form of a first-round pick, if another team tried to sign Brown.

With no salary cap space for the next two seasons, draft picks are all the Lakers have going for them right now. The Lakers’ record dictates they’ll pick 10th next month, but you never know what will come from the “ping-pong ball situation,” as Buss called it.

In fact, the most excited Buss got during the media session was when he talked about the lottery. “I’d love to see us get in the top three,” he said, with a little pump of his fist.

He mentioned the fact that Michael Jordan was drafted with the No. 3 pick. Of course, the only probability smaller than the Lakers’ getting a top-three pick is their finding another Jordan. (I’d make a joke about David Stern fixing the lottery to get the Lakers the top pick, but I’m afraid he’d fine me $100,000).

So that’s what gets the blood rushing in the Laker offices these days: ping-pong balls and a former coach.

It’s hard to tell which side is delaying this Jackson hire, which has yet to enter the formal negotiations stage.

“I haven’t said that I do want him back,” Buss said.

As for Jackson, “I think he wants to return to coaching, but I’m not sure it’s next season.”

One theory is that Jackson will wait for a better situation to arise than the Lakers’. This whole notion that Jackson takes jobs only with teams on the brink of a championship is half-baked. He got his Chicago Bull gig because he was the assistant coach when Doug Collins was fired. Was he supposed to turn down the chance to coach his first NBA team?

As for turning down other opportunities before joining the Lakers in 1999, what coach wouldn’t want to have Shaquille O’Neal at his peak and the emerging Kobe Bryant? Is he supposed to apologize for that?

And it’s not as if he never had to work with anything less than the top talent.

His finest coaching job may have been in 1993-94, when Jordan retired on the eve of training camp and he coached Scottie Pippen and the leftovers to a 55-win season.

We all know Jackson had some not-so-nice things to say about Bryant in his book “The Last Season.” We know Bryant isn’t enamored of Jackson, no matter how often he says he would be fine with the Lakers hiring him. Buss said Bryant would be consulted but wouldn’t be involved in a “decisionary” capacity.

Here’s the thing: Kobe has no choice. The Lakers tried things his way last summer, and it resulted in one of the worst seasons in franchise history. He has to live with the perception that he ran off Jackson. He can’t survive the double-whammy that blocked his return.

Besides, if John Mason -- whose fiancee ran away from their 600-guest wedding and faked a kidnapping -- still wants to marry Jennifer Wilbanks, I think Bryant and Jackson can walk down the aisle together.

For better or for worse.

J.A. Adande can be reached at j.a.adande@latimes.com. To read previous columns by Adande, go to latimes.com/adande.