If I’m not mistaken, Phil Jackson was experimenting with Cannabis long before the back and hip pains!
Following the tune of Warriors head coach Steve Kerr — who admitting to trying medicinal marijuana after back surgery sidelined him for part of the 2015-16 NBA season — Phil Jackson has also copped to using the drug for similar reason.
Jackson told CBS Sports’ “We Need to Talk” that after a back injury in the late ’60s with the Knicks, he used it as a pain medication.
[When I was recovering from back surgery], I was smoking marijuana during that period of time,” Jackson said. “I think it was a distraction for me as much as a pain reliever. But I never thought of it as ultimately a pain medication for that type of situation … We have tried to stop [marijuana use] in the NBA. I don’t think we have been able to stop it. I think it still goes on and is still a part of the culture in the NBA. It is something that we either have to accommodate or figure out another way to deal with it.
Jackson — a noted hippie — was likely smoking weed with or without back pain, especially after admitting that he’s tripped off of LSD a few times.
Kudos to Jackson for being honest about it as well.
