With 11 championship rings, retired NBA coach Phil Jackson is arguably the best to ever do it. One of the most amazing things is that he was able to consistently put together championship teams during some of the NBA’s most competitive years. So what team does the Zen master say gave him the most trouble? None other than the Bad Boy Detroit teams of the early 1990’s.
“The Detroit Pistons were always hard to coach against,” Jackson said. “When I first got to Chicago, we had a couple of fracas.”
For those of you that aren’t familiar with the Chuck Daly led Detroit teams of the early 90’s that featured Isiah Thomas, Bill Laimbeer, Joe Dumars, and Dennis Rodman, to name a few, there was a reason they were called the Bad Boys. That team wasn’t intimidated by anyone and played with a cockiness and reckless abandon that made them the team you loved to hate. Their battles with the Chicago Bulls during this period were legendary and one could argue that those tough games helped shape a young Michael Jordan into becoming the GOAT. So this pick by the Zen Master is hardly surprising.
H/T: Lakers Holicz