Phil Jackson Teams -- no Point Guard needed?
By Hans Uy
Of all Phil Jackson coached teams, no point guard has ever averaged more than 5.5 assists per game. Only Gary Payton did 5.5apg in the 2003-04 season. Over a period of 16 seasons, only four point guards have managed to get above 4 assists per game under Phil Jackson as shown in the table below:
| Season |
Player |
APG |
| 89-90 |
John Paxson |
4.1 |
| |
BJ Armstrong |
2.5 |
| 90-91 |
BJ Armstrong |
3.7 |
| |
John Paxson |
3.6 |
| 91-92 |
BJ Armstrong |
3.2 |
| |
John Paxson |
3.1 |
| 92-93 |
BJ Armstrong |
4.0 |
| 93-94 |
BJ Armstrong |
3.9 |
| |
Steve Kerr |
2.6 |
| 94-95 |
BJ Armstrong |
3.0 |
| 95-96 |
Ron Harper |
2.6 |
| 96-97 |
Ron Harper |
2.5 |
| 97-98 |
Ron Harper |
2.9 |
| 99-00 |
Ron Harper |
3.4 |
| |
Derek Fisher |
2.8 |
| |
Brian Shaw |
2.7 |
| 00-01 |
Derek Fisher |
4.4 |
| |
Brian Shaw |
3.2 |
| 01-02 |
Derek Fisher |
2.6 |
| 02-03 |
Derek Fisher |
3.6 |
| |
Brian Shaw |
1.5 |
| 03-04 |
Gary Payton |
5.5 |
| 04-05 |
Smush Parker |
3.7 |
| 05-06 |
Smush Parker |
2.8 |
Among all players, the best assists per game average in a season belonged to Scottie Pippen who averaged 7.0 apg in the 1991-92 season wherein he had an astonishing 21 ppg 7.7 rpg 7.0 apg season.
Best APG Seasons Under Phil Jackson
| Player |
APG |
Season |
| Scottie Pippen |
7.0 |
91-92 |
| Scottie Pippen |
6.3 |
92-93 |
| Michael Jordan |
6.3 |
89-90 |
| Scottie Pippen |
6.2 |
90-91 |
| Michael Jordan |
6.1 |
91-92 |
| Scottie Pippen |
5.9 |
95-96 |
| Kobe Bryant |
5.9 |
02-03 |
| Scottie Pippen |
5.8 |
97-98 |
| Scottie Pippen |
5.7 |
96-97 |
| Scottie Pippen |
5.6 |
93-94 |
| Kobe Bryant |
5.5 |
01-02 |
| Gary Payton |
5.5 |
03-04 |
| Lamar Odom |
5.5 |
05-06 |
Only 2 players have surpassed the 6 apg mark in PJ-coached teams and this was all on or before the 92-93 season.
But another peculiar observation: Even if Phil Jackson’s point guards seem to be low in assists, all of his teams have out-assisted their opponents.
| Season |
Team
Assist Total |
Opponent
Assist Total |
Difference |
| 89-90 |
2172 |
2110 |
62 |
| 90-91 |
2212 |
2016 |
198 |
| 91-92 |
2279 |
1841 |
438 |
| 92-93 |
2133 |
1918 |
215 |
| 93-94 |
2102 |
1840 |
262 |
| 94-95 |
1970 |
1713 |
257 |
| 95-96 |
2033 |
1592 |
441 |
| 96-97 |
2142 |
1619 |
523 |
| 97-98 |
1952 |
1595 |
357 |
| 99-00 |
1921 |
1597 |
324 |
| 00-01 |
1888 |
1659 |
229 |
| 01-02 |
1882 |
1643 |
239 |
| 02-03 |
1919 |
1753 |
166 |
| 03-04 |
1948 |
1708 |
240 |
| 05-06 |
1734 |
1730 |
4 |
| 06-07 |
1850 |
1798 |
52 |
Hans is an IT professional in Manila, Philippines and a long time fanatic of NBA and NBA statistics. He got hooked by playing NBA fantasy sports for the past 7 years, oftentimes being accused of cheating by his league-mates of exploiting system deficiencies. You can reach him through email at hansjuy@gmail.com.
