Waiting Game

LA Times: Fifty-four days have passed since Laker General Manager Mitch Kupchak called Phil Jackson a “viable candidate” to fill the Laker coaching vacancy, a span in which three other teams have hired coaches and the seemingly eternal NBA playoffs have almost run their course.

What’s the holdup?

Or, perhaps better phrased, where’s the vision?

After weeks of reflective time for both sides — as in, “Could this really work?” — the Lakers expressed serious interest in Jackson last week. But Jackson seems to be awaiting a revelation to clarify whether he should return to the game that has given him nine championships in 14 seasons.

He said last month he hadn’t “quite got the vision yet,” then said Thursday he would finally get “off the queue here in a day or two,” but still has not made a decision.

The Lakers want a coach in place by the June 28 draft and are committed to him, but …

“At this time in his life, he wants to make sure he’s committed,” Laker assistant general manager Jim Buss said Monday. “I want him committed for three or four years, if that’s what he’s going to do. If he isn’t, that just shows you the class of the man he is; he’s not going to hurt us and put us in a bad position.

“He’s promised me he wouldn’t do a one-and-out. Rudy Tomjanovich hurt us. It threw us for a loop. We can’t have something like that. I understand totally and appreciate that Phil respects our position.”

Buss, son of the Laker owner, said he expects Jackson to reach a decision by the end of the week, “one way or the other.”

Financial negotiations are not expected to be overly difficult — Laker vice president Magic Johnson said as much this month in estimating Jackson’s price tag would fall in the $7-million to $10-million range — which leaves Jackson negotiating one thing.

His state of mind.

He is assessing the rigors of coaching at least 82 games a season, the unavoidable conflict that comes with some superstar egos and the pressures of winning with a Laker roster branded by Jackson as unappealing and underachieving.

Jackson, 59, would not be inheriting a championship-caliber team, a reason why he has slowly moved down a career checklist.

He initially considered health a possible holdup — he had an angioplasty in May 2003 to clear a blocked artery and he suffers from arthritis in his knees and hips — but his concerns were eliminated after a series of tests cleared him physically for a return.

Then he moved on to Kobe Bryant.

Jackson skewered the Laker guard in a tell-all book last fall, calling him uncoachable and writing about an ever-present psychological war between the two of them.

Jackson wanted to meet with Bryant last month to gauge his reaction to the criticism and to receive a sign that Bryant would buy into a team-first philosophy. But Bryant did not want to meet because of his own concern — that he would be labeled the culprit if Jackson did not rejoin the Lakers, regardless of Jackson’s reasons.

Bryant’s reluctance is viewed by Jackson as a negative but is not a deal-breaker, a source close to Jackson said. Jackson would prefer to have held a meeting with his former player but somewhat understands the reasoning behind Bryant’s actions.

It is now up to Jackson.

“I think our guy is getting close to a decision,” a team source said. “There’s just a few things left to think about.”