Phil Jackson the New President of the Knicks

Looking at a 27-40 record, the New York Knicks begin to look at the future and a big part of the puzzle was put into place when they hired Phil Jackson and officially made him the new president of the team. Jackson, who won two championships as a forward with the Knicks, returns to basketball agreed to terms with the team on what is being reported as a 5-year contract that is worth about $12 million a year. The number, however, is right in range for a man who obviously knows talent since he has won 11 championships as a coach. Now, Jackson will look to improve a team that has some good talent, but needs to put the pieces together in order to take the next step in the league. The Knicks' last championship came when Jackson won his last as a player in 1973 and this season has definitely been one that the team would like to forget. Despite a recent surge, they are well under .500 and have seen struggles multiple time this season. The first task at hand for Jackson with the Knicks will come in the off-season as he will have to make a decision on what to do with Carmelo Anthony who is set to be a free agent. Anthony can get a rather lucrative deal for one year longer and $33 million more than he would get with any other team in the league, but the All-Star forward would like to discuss with Jackson regarding the future of the team and what the plan is moving forward. It has been said by Anthony, though, that the priority would be to re-sign with the Knicks. It also appears that the team can be looking for a new head coach. It is speculated that Mike Woodson will be relieved of his duties and that Jackson will look for a new head coach. Should he look towards some of the coaches he mentored, there are options with Steve Kerr, Brian Shaw and Kurt Rambis out there. Even more interesting will be to see if the Los Angeles Lakers come calling Jackson should they be in search of a new head coach this off-season as well.