New York Knicks: NBPA Head Michele Roberts Blasts Phil Jackson
National Basketball Player Association executive director Michele Roberts is calling for New York Knicks team president Phil Jackson to be held accountable.
New York Knicks team president Phil Jackson has become one of the most polarizing individuals in the NBA. One could argue that he achieved that status during his coaching career, but his tenure as an executive has been nothing short of controversial.
Jackson’s divisive time in New York reached its boiling point when The Zen Master publicly advised franchise player Carmelo Anthony to accept a trade.
Jackson telling Anthony to allow a trade to be made was an almost unprecedented turn of events. Jackson has never been one to bite his tongue, but this was a perceived violation of the players’ rights and responsibilities.
According to Harvey Araton of The Vertical, Michele Roberts, the executive director of the National Basketball Players Association, criticized Jackson’s actions towards Anthony.
"“I think Phil was deliberately trying to shame ‘Melo out of the city,” she told The Vertical."
Roberts continued:
"“Our players understand that they can privately complain about how a team is managed but they cannot do it publicly without being subject to sanction,” she said. “But it has to work both ways. If Phil tells ‘Melo in private that being in New York is not a good fit for him, that’s his right. But these comments were made in public, and it’s very disturbing because Phil gave him the no-trade clause and he has to respect it. He’s got to allow a player to make a decision for any reason – to win a ring, for money, home life, whatever.”"
Whether or not you agree with Jackson’s comments, Roberts raised fair points as far as the NBA legislation is concerned.
As Roberts alluded to, it was Jackson who included the no-trade clause in Anthony’s current contract. Thus, while it’s fair for The Zen Master to want to trade Anthony, the potential inability to do so rests squarely on the shoulders of the current regime.
Discussing Anthony’s future in a face-to-face setting with the 10-time All-Star would be fair, but advising him to accept a trade on a public platform tests the limitations of the NBA’s rulebook.
A player would be punished and penalized for publicly criticizing an executive, yet Jackson has walked away unscathed from his controversial comments.
In fairness to Jackson, his comments about Anthony have generally been basketball-related. Whether it was his appearance on CBS Sports’ We Need To Talk or his exit meeting with the press, his honesty has been more problematic than his actual quotes.
Jackson’s job as team president simply wields different restrictions and expectations than his incomparable tenure as a head coach.
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No punishment has come down just yet, but NBPA executive director Michele Roberts is pushing for New York Knicks team president Phil Jackson to be reprimanded.