Curtain falls on Jackson's dismal Broadway show

NEW YORK - Phil Jackson wanted to trade Carmelo Anthony and wouldn't rule out dealing Kristaps Porzingis.

As it turns out, the man who was charged with leading the New York Knicks back to respectability is the one leaving.

Jackson is out as team president after overseeing one of the worst eras in franchise history, with the team saying in a statement on Wednesday that they had "mutually agreed to part company."

Days after Jackson reiterated his desire to move Anthony and said he would listen to deals for Porzingis, Madison Square Garden chairman James Dolan reversed course and cut ties with Jackson with two years remaining on his contract.

"After careful thought and consideration, we mutually agreed that the Knicks will be going in a different direction," Dolan said.

"Phil Jackson is one of the most celebrated and successful individuals in the history of the NBA. His legacy in the game of basketball is unmatched."

But his work as a first-time executive was awful.

The winner of an NBA-record 11 championships as coach, Jackson couldn't engineer one playoff berth while running the Knicks. The team was 80-166 in his three full seasons, including a franchise-worst 17-65 in 2014-15.

His departure was quickly welcomed by Knicks fans such as film director Spike Lee, who posted a picture of himself on Instagram in a celebratory pose.

The move comes less than a week after Jackson led the Knicks through the NBA Draft and on the eve of free agency.

Dolan said he would not be involved in the operation of the team, adding that general manager Steve Mills would run the day-to-day business in the short term and that former Toronto Raptors executive Tim Leiweke would advise him.

Jackson was a Hall of Fame coach with the Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers, delivering titles with the likes of Michael Jordan, Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant. He also played for the Knicks when they won NBA titles in 1970 and 1973.

He was welcomed back to the organization with a $60 million contract to huge fanfare in March 2014, but it soon became clear the transition would be a poor one.

His first coaching hire, Derek Fisher, lasted just 1 seasons, and Jackson's trades and free-agency moves also failed to improve the club.

"I had hoped, of course, to bring another NBA championship to the Garden. As someone who treasures winning, I am deeply disappointed that we weren't able to do that," Jackson said.

"New York fans deserve nothing less. I wish them and the Knicks organization all the best - today and always."

The turbulence he created off the court might have led to his departure more than the Knicks' record on it.

Jackson publicly talked about moving without Anthony - angering the National Basketball Players Association - though the All-Star forward has two years left on the five-year, $124 million deal that Jackson gave him shortly after taking the job.

Anthony has a no-trade clause and has said he wants to stay in New York. The stalemate that hung over the team for much of last season threatened to linger throughout the summer.

Then Jackson said before the draft that he was listening to offers for Porzingis, the 21-year-old forward from Latvia whom he drafted with the No 4 pick in 2015 in one of his few successful moves.

Coach Jeff Hornacek, in Orlando with the Knicks' team preparing for summer league, thanked Jackson for bringing him to New York last summer.

"It's a tough day for us but our focus is to get this team better, continue to build our young players and figure out a way to win," Hornacek said. "We have a lot of time before the regular season and we will figure that out."

Jackson believed the Knicks would compete for a playoff berth last season after he traded for Derrick Rose, signed Joakim Noah and Courtney Lee and hired Hornacek. But after a solid start, they quickly hit the skids and finished 31-51.

Associated Press