Phil Jackson: Media hurting Knicks’ chances of signing free agents

The New York Knicks might have trouble attracting big-name free agents this offseason because they have won just 49 games over the past two seasons combined. But if you ask Phil Jackson, the media isn’t doing the team any favors in that department.

Jackson gave reporters a hard time on Friday about making New York a less attractive destination. Ian Begley of ESPN.com noted that the Zen Master may have been joking around.

“You guys are making it really hard on us to get free agents. You don’t have to do that,” Jackson said. “You can make this a good place to come to. It’s a nice place. The press is good. They’re positive about the team. They improved 15 games this year. That can help us out. You guys can do a job too, make it better on yourselves next year too.”

Some people would probably argue that covering an underachieving team like the Knicks is no tougher than covering a winning team. In many ways, that’s true.

Jackson was tasked with rescuing a tortured franchise when the Knicks signed him to a massive contract and put him in charge of their basketball operations department. The results have not been good, and that is why they will probably have to work harder than other teams to lure free agents. Carmelo Anthony even has some of his own concerns about how free agency is going to shake out this summer.

Was Jackson joking? Probably. Does that mean there was no truth to what he said? We know Phil better than that.