Basic Data:

Name: Phil Douglas Jackson
Born: Sept. 17, 1945
Height: 6-8
Nickname: the Zen Master
High School: Williston, in Williston, ND
College: North Dakota
NBA Titles as player: 1
NBA Titles as coach: 9

The NBA player:

Phil Jackson was an NBA player from 1967 to 1980. He played 10 seasons for the Knicks and 2 for the Nets.

He was selected for the All-Rookie First Team in 1967-68 and he was champion as a reserve forward with New York in 1972-73. He could have won another championship with the Knicks in the 1969-70 season but was injured and was not a part of the roster.

His numbers as a player:
Career season stats: 6.7 pts, 4.3 reb, 1.1 ast
Career playoff stats: 7.7 pts, 4.2 reb, 0.9 ast
Best season: 1974-75, 10.8 pts, 7.7 reb, 1.7 ast
Championship season: 8.1 pts, 4.3 reb, 1.2 ast

The NBA Coach:

Phil Jackson coached Chicago to six NBA titles in nine years and the Lakers to three titles in 6 years. With his 9 championships won he tied the Red Auerbach record for the most all-time.

He also leads the NBA in playoff victories with 178, playoff winning percentage (.709), and regular season winning percentage (.713 - coaches with at least 2 full seasons).

It is hard to believe, but he was named Coach of the Year just once, in the 1995-96 season.

As part of the "NBA at 50" celebration during the '96-97 season, Phil Jackson was selected one of the Top Ten Coaches in NBA History. While it was a list without ranking, one could easily asume that he is the best ever, and the error margin would be minimal.