In the aftermath of the passing of the great Jerry West, people are setting the record straight on what really happened between him and the Los Angeles Lakers. According to league insider Ethan Strauss, it all started when West took issue with the relationship between Buss and their head coach at the time, Phil Jackson.
“After Jerry Buss died, Jeanie Buss inherited the team and wholly excommunicated Jerry West from the franchise, even taking his season tickets,” wrote Ethan Strauss. “According to sources, the bitterness started back when West was critical of Jeanie Buss’ relationship with then-Laker coach Phil Jackson. Phil won that particular battle, and ultimately the power struggle with West.”
After news broke of Jerry’s passing, countless fans, players, and executives spoke out in celebration and remembrance of his career. Before he retired in 1974, West was a former scoring leader, 1x champion, and 14x All-Star for the Lakers. He was a legend who continued his service long after he played his final game.
He took on a coaching role and then a front-office role for the franchise and was revered for his decision-making regarding team building and chemistry. Eventually, however, West was ostracized from the Lakers family and he was basically ignored by the team up until his death.
It’s only now that we are beginning to understand the gravity of his falling out with the team. At the time, Jeanie was still involved with coaching phenom Phil Jackson and it wouldn’t be until 17 years later that they would split up. While it’s taboo for high-level team executives to share such a close romantic bond, the couple tried their best to make it work despite obvious obstacles.
Unfortunately, it cost them the loyalty of Jerry West, who became so outspoken on the arrangement that Jeanie felt she had no choice but to cut ties with the Lakers legend. She canceled his season tickets and made it clear that he would have no role on the team going forward.
Up until the very end, West saw it as the ultimate from his former team and he was often left in disbelief seeing how far they turned on him. It was not the treatment that West deserved from the team he spent his career with and it’s fair to say that the Lakers may have some regrets over how the whole situation played out.
Sadly, there’s no taking back what happened but it can serve as a lesson for what happens when you mix business and personal life at the professional level. Jeanie chose her fling with Phil Jackosn (which didn’t last) over the chance to keep working with one of the greatest basketball minds in the business.
To say Lakers Nation is disappointed with this dynamic would be an understatement but Jeanie isn’t going anywhere. With both West and Jackson out of the picture now, the 62-year-old multi-millionaire is running the team her way and she’s determined not to make the same mistakes again.
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