Philip Douglas "Phil" Jackson (born September 17, 1945 in
Deer Lodge,
Montana) is a former American professional basketball player and the current
coach of the
Los Angeles Lakers. Jackson is widely considered one of the greatest coaches in the history of the
National Basketball Association (NBA). His reputation was established as head coach of the
Chicago Bulls from 1989 through 1998; during his tenure, Chicago won six NBA titles. His next team, the
Los Angeles Lakers, won three consecutive
NBA titles from 2000-2002. In total, Jackson has won 9 NBA titles as a coach, a record shared with
Red Auerbach. Jackson is known for his use of
Tex Winter's
triangle offense as well as a
holistic approach to coaching that is influenced by
Eastern philosophy, earning him the nickname "
Zen Master". (Jackson cites
Robert Pirsig's book
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance as one of the major guiding forces in his life. His fond admiration for the book is the source of his nickname "Zen Master.") He also applies Native American spiritual practices as documented in his book "Sacred Hoops." He is the author of several candid books about his teams and his basketball strategies. Jackson is also a recipient of the state of
North Dakota's
Roughrider Award. Jackson leads the 2007 class of the
Basketball Hall of Fame. Jackson regularly attempts to alter his appearance so the media cannot use old photos of him for recent news, and, true to his word, as of September 2008, he was no longer sporting his illustrious, white mustache, which saw 9 NBA titles.