Mark Jackson’s name is one that always does the rounds in the offseason when it comes to teams looking for a new head coach. Jackson, who currently works as a broadcast commentator for ESPN and ABC, enjoyed some very successful years as the coach of the Golden State Warriors.
Jackson coached the team for three seasons, during which Golden State made the playoffs for successive seasons for the first time since the early 1990s, and he also led them to their first 50-win season since 1993-94 in the 2013-14 campaign. He was fired at the end of that season, however, with Steve Kerr taking over, and the rest is history.
Many at the time questioned the decision to fire Jackson, but it has since come out that he made a lot of controversial statements behind the scenes during his time there. There was also a recent report about some homophobic comments he made during his time with the Warriors, and with all this baggage, it’s not surprising that a team hasn’t pounced at the opportunity to get Jackson onboard. Someone who played under Jackson during that time was Andrew Bogut, and he was asked about Jackson not getting a coaching job in the league during a Reddit AMA.
“I think everyone deserves a second chance and he will eventually get another chance. But the well noted church within a locker room I think hurts his job prospects…”
Jackson has been a pastor, and his strong religious beliefs are what Bogut believes is being the roadblock here. These homophobic comments being revealed don’t help either, and you have to wonder if he does get another chance. Jackson has been credited with laying the foundations for the Warriors dynasty, and his coaching acumen cannot be questioned, but everything else is very concerning.
It speaks to how concerned the teams in the NBA are as well, that he hasn’t landed a job yet, and we know that these teams will do whatever it takes to have success.
