The GM's Suite

Jeanie Buss felt betrayed by her brother Jim’s hiring of Mike D’Antoni

Jeanie-Jim-Buss

Jeanie Buss is prepping for the updated release of her memoir, “Laker Girl.” The update includes the most recent Laker drama that came last November with the Lakers hiring current head coach Mike D’Antoni over Jeanie’s fiancé Phil Jackson. Jeanie reveals that she felt a sense of betrayal by the move. If you recall, Jeanie even sought out First Lady Michelle Obama’s advice.

There was no discussion of money at the meeting or any of the supposed demands by Phil that were later erroneously reported in the media.

Looking back, I wonder where the media was getting its information. Someone was talking.

As Jim and Mitch were preparing to leave, Phil got in the last word, telling them, “I’m going to consider this but I have to check with some people,” meaning he had to get cleared by his doctors and talk to his family.

This could be a life-changing decision. He wasn’t going to just say, “Okay, where’s the contract?” He was retired and they had just dropped a bombshell on him. He needed a little time to think it over. So they agreed to talk again on Monday morning.

Jim and Mitch made it very clear they were still going to talk to other people. During that weekend, they spoke to both Mike D’Antoni and Mike Dunleavy.

Phil understood that. He wasn’t pleading for the job, and they weren’t negotiating yet. . . .

Then, late on Sunday evening/Monday morning, Jim Buss shocked the basketball world:

The sequence of events — Phil almost coming back and then being told someone else was better for the job — practically destroyed me. It almost took away my passion for this job and this game. It felt like I had been stabbed in the back. It was a betrayal. I was devastated.

I felt that I got played. Why did they have to do that? Why did Jim pull Phil back into the mix if he wasn’t sincere about it? . . .

Phil wasn’t looking for the job, and then he wasted 36 hours of his life preparing for it when they were never in a million years going to hire him anyway.

How do you do that to your sister? How do you do that to Phil Jackson?

Jeanie also revealed that her brother Jim confessed he made a mistake in hiring Mike Brown and that he had cost the team money in doing so.

Tags

You may also like

Will the Nets or Lakers Be Title Contenders in 2022-23?

Earvin "Magic" Johnson discusses his new Apple TV+ docuseries "They Call Me Magic"

Magic Johnson on Working with Black Women & Surprising Footage in Apple TV+ Docuseries

Do the Lakers Have a Path to Turn Their Season Around?