Stephen Jackson

01/10/24 • 51 min

The Charlotte Bobcats existed for 10 seasons and racked up a grand total of zero playoff wins. The pinnacle of the franchise came in 2009/10, when the Stephen Jackson and Gerald Wallace-led Bobcats made the playoffs and ranked first in defense.

Stephen Jackson arrived in Charlotte nine games into the 2009/10 season after being traded from Golden State. Stak was just two years removed from making history with the 2007 We Believe Warriors. That Warriors core - featuring Baron Davis, Matt Barnes, Jason Richardson and Al Harrington - dismantled quickly following their magical run. By 2009, Captain Jack was the lone sailor left, and he wasn't happy. He publicly requested a trade in the summer of 2009 and was shipped off to the Bobcats in December.

Directly following the trade, reporters asked Bobcats head coach Larry Brown if he was worried about Jackson joining his locker room. Stak had a bad reputation following the Malice at the Palace, and more recently from a sideline blow-up with his old Warriors coach, Don Nelson. But Brown was not worried at all. Jackson, he said, shared certain qualities with his former student, Allen Iverson. "I can deal with (high-maintenance) kids. All you have to do is be straight with them,’ Brown said. ‘After six years with Allen (Iverson in Philadelphia), I don’t look at anybody as a challenge. (Jackson) wants to play and he’s a competitor. Guys like that you can make work in your locker room."

With Jackson, Wallace, Tyson Chandler and Boris Diaw, the Bobcats won a franchise-high 44 games and made the playoffs for the first time in their history. Despite getting swept in the first round, this 2010 season is a source of great pride for Jackson.

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Previous Episode

Vince Carter's Ugly Toronto Breakup, Inside the Mind of Phil Jackson

In this episode, Dylan Dreyfuss and Jelani McCoy break down two fascinating subjects.

01:20 - Vince Carter’s Ugly Breakup with Toronto

21:15 - The Mind Games of Phil Jackson

First, we discuss why Toronto turned against Vince Carter. VC put the Raptors on the map and inspired a golden generation of Canadian basketball players, yet today, he is despised by much of the Raptors fanbase. Why? Well, it’s complicated, and unless you were actually inside the Raptors organization, you probably don’t know the truth. Lucky for us, we’ve got J-Mac. Jelani played 67 games for the Raptors in 2002/03 - the same time that VC and Toronto started to turn against each other.

Next, we attempt to enter the complicated mind of Phil Jackson. Jelani spent the entire season with the Lakers in 2001-02, which was the third leg of their three-peat. He recalls the novel that Phil handed him at the beginning of the season, Kobe’s transformation from garden snake to black mamba, why he thinks Shaq was the best veteran Kobe could’ve had and much more.

We’ll be back with new episodes every Wednesday from here on out! You can also catch episodes every Wednesday at 8PM EST on DraftKings Network.

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Next Episode

Tim Hardaway Sr.

To properly tell the story of the Miami Heat becoming one of the NBA's most prestigious franchises, you have to start in the Spring of 1995. Pat Riley was on the last year of his contract with the New York Knicks, where he was the Head Coach for four years. Riley had taken the Knicks from sub .500 to Eastern Conference Champions in just a few years, and he wanted a compensation package that properly reflected his value. Riley asked Knicks management for a big contract, a hefty ownership stake, and total control of the team's basketball operations.

The Knicks balked at Riley's demands, so he shifted his attention to Miami. The Heat - who joined the NBA as an expansion team in 1989 - failed to win more than 42 games in their first seven years in the league. Mickey Arison took control of the team in 1995 and didn't want to settle for mediocrity. Through a mutual friend, Arison started talking to Riley while he finished out his last year in New York. Riley presented a similar list of demands to Arison. He wanted a $50 million contract, a 10% ownership in the team upon signing, an additional 10% over time, a limo service to and from games, and a $500 per-diem. In addition to all of that, he asked that the Heat buy his homes in LA and New York. Arison agreed, and Riley took the command in 1995-96.

During his first season in Miami, Riley traded for 30-year-old Tim Hardaway, a 3x All-Star who some thought was over the hill. On this episode, Hardaway takes us back to his first days in Miami and the Heat's breakout 1996-97 campaign. Joining Hardaway in South Beach in 1997 were Alonzo Mourning, Dan Majerle, Jamal Mashburn and PJ Brown. They won 61 games and had the #1 defense in the league. In the playoffs, they beat Orlando in Round 1, followed by an iconic 7-game, fight-filled ECSF vs. the Knicks, Riley's old team.

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