From Bulls to Unfulfilled Lakers, Jackson, Staff Deliver Big Time

Like a hot private stock rumored to be going public, reports around the NBA had Phil Jackson headed to the Lakers for a year after he’d left the 1997-98 champion Chicago Bulls.

On June 16, 1999, Laker fans got their wish when Jackson became the 15th head coach in franchise history.

Jackson, who won an NBA title as a player with the New York Knicks in 1972-73, lived up to the hype by leading the Lakers to their first NBA championship in 12 seasons, and he did it by not being reluctant to make changes.

He brought in his own coaching staff, luring three of his former assistants--Tex Winter, Jim Cleamons and Frank Hamblen--from Chicago. Jackson also brought in aging veterans Ron Harper, A.C. Green, Brian Shaw and John Salley.

But Jackson’s biggest challenge was to get the Lakers’ superstars, Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant, to play together. O’Neal and Bryant were not always on the same page in previous seasons. Once Jackson took over, however, he made sure everyone knew that O’Neal was superstar No. 1 and Bryant was next in line.

“We needed Phil to get over the hump because of his resume,” O’Neal said. “We had too many guys messing around before Phil came in. He told the guys, ‘We’ll run you out of here if we have to.’ It was all about discipline. Phil is discipline.”

It turned out to be a formula of success. Not only did O’Neal win league most valuable player honors but the Lakers won as a team, finishing the regular season with the best overall record.

Then came the playoffs and Jackson’s ability to mold a complex group into a winner was a thing of beauty. The Lakers didn’t steamroller their opponents as many thought they would, but the way they battled back from adversity made their championship run even more special.

Jackson still has critics who say he has won only because of Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen in Chicago, and O’Neal and Bryant in Los Angeles, but he is a man of his word. He told everyone that he would win a championship before his five-year contract with the Lakers expired and now, after one season, he has done that.

“I don’t know if I’m going to stay all five years,” Jackson said. “I mean, I have a five-year contract . . . [but] if I reach a goal and things are fine and I’ve done the job that I came here to do, I may quit early.”

If he does, one thing is sure: Jackson and the rest of the Lakers’ new guard accomplished something this season and each played a key role.

TEX WINTER

Known in the basketball world as the guru of the triangle offense, Winter helped turn the Lakers into a cohesive unit. He stayed in Chicago for one season after Jackson left, then joined the Lakers for his 53rd season as a coach at the Division I collegiate or professional level, the longest tenure of any active coach in college or professional basketball.

The triangle offense has been part of Winter’s life since his 1940s college days at USC, where he played for Sam Barry and with Bill Sharman and Alex Hannum. When he was with the Bulls, Winter never had a dominant player in the middle. He loved the idea of working with a featured scorer and power player like O’Neal.

It turned out to be a match made in heaven as Winter helped mold O’Neal into the dominant player in the league, at the same time making sure Bryant stepped up his game.

Winter is an admitted pessimist and his continuing battle with Jackson, an eternal optimist, always was a treat for the players, who loved his basketball intensity.

JIM CLEAMONS

As the youngest member of the coaching staff, Cleamons filled the role as a tough but fair teacher. On a team with celebrated players like O’Neal and Bryant, Cleamons made sure the other players knew their roles.

During his eight-year playing career, which began when he was selected 13th overall by the Lakers in 1971, Cleamons had to fight for every minute of playing time. He played one season with the Lakers, five with the Cleveland Cavaliers, 2 1/2 with the Knicks--with whom he was a teammate of Jackson--and one season with the then-Washington Bullets.

Cleamons, a member of the Lakers’ 1971-72 championship team, was an assistant with the Bulls for four NBA title seasons. He left Chicago to become head coach of the Dallas Mavericks but was fired after a a year and a half. He spent last season as head coach of the WNBA’s Chicago Condors before rejoining Jackson.

Cleamons, who has become a hot NBA coaching candidate again, is a defensive specialist. He played a key role in the Lakers’ improved defense, and is a master scout.

FRANK HAMBLEN

Hamblen’s connection with Jackson is through Winter, who hired him as an assistant coach when he coached the Houston Rockets in 1971-72. Hamblen, who has 28 years of NBA coaching experience--which ranks him second among NBA assistants--is regarded as one of the hardest working coaches in the league, yet someone who never takes himself too seriously.

Hamblen spent three seasons with the Bulls, winning titles in 1996-97 and 1997-98, and has worked with five teams in the league. Like Cleamons, Hamblen is known for his expert scouting reports. It was not uncommon to hear him call out opponents’ plays during games this season.

One of the looser coaches on the Lakers’ staff, Hamblen is well liked by the players and is expected to be with the franchise for years to come.

RON HARPER

If there ever was a player who has been a perfect fit under Jackson, it’s Harper. In 1994, his playing career was considered all but over. He had spent eight seasons as the main man with Cleveland and the Clippers, but was viewed as damaged goods when he joined Jackson with the Bulls. But instead of finishing a career, Harper responded with five solid seasons, playing on three championship teams with the Bulls.

When the Lakers signed Harper as a free agent, the team was criticized for bringing in a veteran whose best seasons were behind him. What Harper’s critics didn’t realize was that he still had a lot left to offer.

By the time the season began, Harper had stepped in as a starting guard and provided leadership on and off the court. He had his moments during the regular season but really showed his value in the playoffs.

Harper gave the Portland Trail Blazers and Indiana Pacers fits with his craftiness and ability to make key baskets. Because Jackson didn’t overwork him during the regular season, Harper had plenty of energy in the playoffs and it’s hard to imagine him not being with the team next season, although he will be 37 in January.

A.C. GREEN

Power forward was considered a weak spot and when the Lakers picked up Green in a trade with the Dallas Mavericks for center Sean Rooks, many thought the team was making a major mistake.

As a member of the Lakers’ last championship team in 1987-88, Green was known as a blue-collar player past his prime. But he showed that he doesn’t hold professional basketball’s record for consecutive games for nothing.

Although Robert Horry played more minutes, Green was the starter. Because his offense was not needed, Green did the same dirty work for O’Neal and Bryant as he’d done during his younger days for Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Magic Johnson.

Green will turn 37 in October and his days with the Lakers may be numbered. But if history repeats itself, don’t count him out because every winning team needs a player like Green.

BRIAN SHAW

Before joining the Lakers, Shaw’s NBA career was at its lowest point. He had just finished a season with the Portland Trail Blazers, having played in only one game. During the off-season, he was traded by Portland to Houston, then was promptly cut by the Rockets, which turned out to be a blessing in disguise.

Shaw, who turned 36 in March, was picked up by the Lakers days before the season began and proved to be a valuable role player. Jackson loves big guards who play defense, which means Shaw may be around as long as Jackson is coach.

Shaw, who has played with eight teams--one of them Il-Messaggero of the Italian League in 1989-90--developed a special relationship with O’Neal. One of his specialties was the alley-oop pass, which he and O’Neal turned into an art form.

JOHN SALLEY

If a year ago, Harper, Green and Shaw were long shots to be with the Lakers this season, then Salley was a shot with no hope. He’d been out of basketball for nearly two years and most figured him content to stay retired with three championship rings--two with the Detroit Pistons and another with the Chicago Bulls.

Salley, however, wanted to return to the league and what better team than the Lakers and Jackson, his former coach in Chicago. Salley, who turned 36 in May, earned a roster spot in training camp and earned his stripes as a practice player against O’Neal.

Although he did not get much playing time during the regular season and playoffs, Salley was instrumental as the team’s jokester. Known as someone unafraid to speak his mind, Salley brought comedy in a different form to the Laker locker room.

It’s uncertain if Salley will return next season but if he does decide to finally call it quits, he went out on top.