Phil Jackson: The Lord of the Rings

Sports journalist Richmond (Badasses) covers a familiar subject in Jackson, the legendary basketball coach, late of the Chicago Bulls and the Los Angeles Lakers, and no shrinking violet. Just this year, Jackson released yet another self-penned reflection, Eleven Rings. Though Jackson declined to participate for this book, that is hardly an obstacle for Richmond, who covers Jackson’s path from God-fearing North Dakota schoolboy athlete (his father, Charles, was an ordained Pentecostal minister; his mother, Elisabeth, a pastor) to basketball-playing free spirit whose philosophical, people-first approach to the game turned him into the quintessential leader of men. “When you needed to be built up,” says Mark Madsen, who played for Jackson in Los Angeles, “he made you think you could take Mike Tyson and Ali in a boxing match.” Richmond interviews Jackson’s former teammates, longtime friends, and the players he coached, employing an informal, almost folksy style that is both a homage to Jackson’s non-conformist persona and a playful jab at his Zen master reputation. Thankfully for readers, Richmond favors personal evolution over hagiography, which is the difference maker in this in-depth and entertaining work. Photos not seen by PW. (Jan.)