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Phil Jackson addresses the media during his introductory news conference as president of the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden last March. Getting your Trinity Audio
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player ready...Long before he started collecting championship rings as coach of the Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers, Phil Jackson was a key sixth man for one of the NBA’s most memorable teams.
Jackson is featured prominently in ESPN’s new “30 for 30” program, “When The Garden Was Eden,” at 8 p.m. Tuesday. The film recounts the New York Knicks of the late 1960s and early ’70s that featured stars such as Willis Reed and Walt Frazier.
Jackson was a key bench player who often made things happen when he came into the game. In the film, teammate Jerry Lucas recalls, “He’d steal four or five balls in a row, or he’d get four or five fouls. That’s just the kind of player he was.”