 | Thisbiography of a living personneeds additionalcitations forverification. Please help by addingreliable sources.Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced orpoorly sourcedmust be removed immediately from the article and its talk page, especially if potentiallylibelous. Find sources: "Mark Jackson" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(January 2021) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
 Jackson with theGolden State Warriors in 2012 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1965-04-01)April 1, 1965 (age 60) Queens, New York, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
| Listed weight | 195 lb (88 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Bishop Loughlin(Brooklyn, New York) |
| College | St. John's (1983–1987) |
| NBA draft | 1987: 1st round, 18th overall pick |
| Drafted by | New York Knicks |
| Playing career | 1987–2004 |
| Position | Point guard |
| Number | 13, 31 |
| Coaching career | 2011–2014 |
| Career history | |
| As a player: | |
| 1987–1992 | New York Knicks |
| 1992–1994 | Los Angeles Clippers |
| 1994–1996 | Indiana Pacers |
| 1996–1997 | Denver Nuggets |
| 1997–2000 | Indiana Pacers |
| 2000–2001 | Toronto Raptors |
| 2001–2002 | New York Knicks |
| 2002–2003 | Utah Jazz |
| 2004 | Houston Rockets |
| As a coach: | |
| 2011–2014 | Golden State Warriors |
| Career highlights | |
| |
| Career statistics | |
| Points | 12,489 (9.6 ppg) |
| Rebounds | 4,963 (3.8 rpg) |
| Assists | 10,334 (8.0 apg) |
Stats at NBA.com  | |
| Stats atBasketball Reference | |
Mark A. Jackson (born April 1, 1965) is an American former professionalbasketball player who was apoint guard in theNational Basketball Association (NBA). He playedcollege basketball for theSt. John's Red Storm and was selected by theNew York Knicks in the first round of the1987 NBA draft with the 18th overall pick. He played in the NBA for the Knicks,Los Angeles Clippers,Indiana Pacers,Denver Nuggets,Toronto Raptors,Utah Jazz, andHouston Rockets in a career spanning from 1987 to 2004.
After retiring from playing basketball, Jackson became a broadcast commentator forESPN andABC alongside his former coachJeff Van Gundy and play-by-play manMike Breen. He also worked as an analyst forThe YES Network'sNew Jersey Nets games. In 2011 theGolden State Warriors hired Jackson as head coach. He coached the team for three seasons, but was fired in 2014 despite leading the Warriors to consecutive playoff appearances for the first time in over 20 years. Following this, he returned to ESPN and continued working as a commentator until his removal in 2023.
Mark Jackson grew up in theSt. Albans neighborhood ofQueens,New York City,New York. He was regarded as one of the nation's elite point guards in secondary school. RaisedCatholic, he attendedBishop Loughlin Memorial High School inBrooklyn, New York City. He was a star player for the school's basketball team under coach Patrick Quigley.[1] Jackson gained a reputation as astreetballer in New York.
Jackson was a college hoops star atSt. John's University. While at St. John's, he played alongside Olympian and NBA All-StarChris Mullin for two seasons. He credits Mullin with teaching him the importance of rigorous practice work in the gym.[2]
While at St. John's, Jackson developed an unusual free-throw line ritual of extending his hand and "cupping" his thumb and index finger around the rim. This helped him stay focused on the rim while shooting foul shots. He continued this well into his pro career and it helped him to a career 77.0% free-throw percentage.
Jackson was the 18th pick of the1987 NBA draft by theNew York Knicks.[3] He teamed withPatrick Ewing andCharles Oakley to turn the Knicks into a primeplayoff team in the late 1980s and early 1990s. However, before the Knicks peaked and became regular playoff contenders, he was traded to the Los Angeles Clippers in 1992.
Jackson had a steady career with the Knicks, most notably under coachRick Pitino, averaging 13.6 points and 10.6assists per game in his rookie season, earning him the1988Rookie of the Year award, the lowest overall draft pick to win the award sinceWoody Sauldsberry in1958. He was the only non-lottery pick to have won the award since the introduction of the system in1985 until the2016–17 season, whereMalcolm Brogdon won the award as a second round pick.
In 1989 Jackson had another promising season for the Knicks, teaming with Ewing to lead them to the Atlantic Division title and the number two seed in the east (behind the eventual championDetroit Pistons, whom they swept 4–0 in the regular season), and making his lone All-Star Game appearance. After sweepingCharles Barkley's Philadelphia team in the opening round, the Knicks faced the upstart Chicago Bulls, led byMichael Jordan, in the Eastern Conference semifinals. Near the end of game two, Jackson en route to a fast break layup in the fourth quarter looked back and stuck out his tongue at Jordan before finishing the layup; Jordan responded with a 40+ PPG average the remainder of the series, and led Chicago to a 4–2 series victory. Following a contract extension prior to the 1990 season, Jackson began to lose his All-Star form; the loss of Pitino (who left to coach the University of Kentucky) and starting the season out of shape were key factors. Consequently, he began to face stiff competition from backup guardRod Strickland, and then after Strickland was traded away,Maurice Cheeks, to the point where in their decisive first-round game five againstLarry Bird,Kevin McHale,Robert Parish,Dennis Johnson and the Boston Celtics at the Boston Garden, Knick coachStu Jackson decided to bench Mark Jackson for the entire game; New York defeated Boston to advance to the second round, where they lost to the eventual champion Detroit Pistons in five games.
After the1991–92 season, he was traded to theLos Angeles Clippers, a trade that sawCharles Smith andDoc Rivers go to the Knicks (this was actually a three-team deal, with the Clippers also obtainingStanley Roberts from theOrlando Magic for draft picks; Roberts had become superfluous in Orlando when the Magic won the draft lottery for his college teammate,Shaquille O'Neal). While with the Clippers, Jackson teamed withDanny Manning,Ron Harper and head coachLarry Brown to lead the Clippers to the second of their two consecutive playoff appearances; the Clippers would not reach the playoffs in consecutive years again until the2011–2012 and2012–2013 seasons.
On June 30, 1994, theIndiana Pacers tradedPooh Richardson,Malik Sealy, and the draft rights toEric Piatkowski for Jackson and the draft rights to Greg Minor. With the Pacers, he teamed withReggie Miller,Rik Smits,Antonio Davis andDale Davis for five out of the next six seasons to make the Indiana Pacers a contender.
Jackson was traded to theDenver Nuggets before the1996–97 NBA season started forJalen Rose.
Looking to re-energize the team's on-court performance, Pacers' presidentDonnie Walsh traded for Jackson andLaSalle Thompson at the trade deadline, giving upVincent Askew,Eddie Johnson and second round picks in 1997 and 1998. The return of Jackson sparked the Pacers, but they still missed the playoffs for the only time in the last decade and a half. Jackson would eventually appear in his only NBA Finals as the Pacers' starting point guard in 2000, when they lost to theLos Angeles Lakers in six games.
Jackson would leave the Pacers that off-season for theToronto Raptors, who needed a point guard and had extra money to spend due to the departure ofTracy McGrady earlier that off-season.Antonio Davis recommended his former Pacers teammate as a suitable replacement. Jackson would only play 54 games for the Raptors before being traded at the trade deadline back to the Knicks.
Jackson was traded to the Knicks, along withMuggsy Bogues (who was later traded to theDallas Mavericks without playing a game for the Knicks), forChris Childs on February 22, 2001. Jackson became the starter at point guard for the rest of the season, playing in 29 games. He helped lead the Knicks to the 4th seed in the Eastern Conference, as the Knicks were knocked out of the playoffs by the Raptors. Despite a solid individual season for Jackson thefollowing year, the Knicks ended the 2001–02 season with a 30–52 record and out of the playoffs for the first time in 15 seasons. In the offseason, he was involved in a trade back to the Nuggets in a deal that includedAntonio McDyess, after which he was immediately waived.
On October 2, 2002, Jackson signed with theUtah Jazz and played for them during the 2002–03 season asJohn Stockton's backup. It was this season that Jackson moved to second place on the list of all-time assists leaders behind his teammate Stockton. Jackson would play all 82 games that season without starting one. Jackson was reported to have caused friction and disputes in the Jazz locker room by attempting to persuade his teammates that he should become the team's starting point guard instead of Stockton.[4][5][6]
On January 15, 2004, Jackson signed with theHouston Rockets backing upSteve Francis. Jackson played in only 42 games as a Rocket and, experiencing a large drop-off in production, finished his career at the season's end.
| This section of abiography of a living personneeds additionalcitations forverification. Please help by addingreliable sources.Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced orpoorly sourcedmust be removed immediately from the article and its talk page, especially if potentiallylibelous. Find sources: "Mark Jackson" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(June 2022) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
Jackson ranks 6th on the all-time assists list (10,334), 24th on the NBA all-time games list (1,296), 34th on the all-time steals list (1,608), 42nd on the all-time minutes played list (39,121), 225th on the all-timethree-point field goals made list (734), and 197th on the all-time three-point field goal attempts list (2,213). He never achieved great individual success; despite winning Rookie of the Year in 1988, he made only one All-Star appearance in his career (1989).
Jackson is also notable for prompting an NBA rule change. In response to his penchant for backing down opposing point guards in the post for 15 or more seconds at a time,[dubious –discuss] the league instituted thefive-second back-to-the-basket violation, sometimes called the "Mark Jackson Rule", prohibiting an offensive player from dribbling with his back to the basket for more than five consecutive seconds when below the free throw line.
Jackson is also known for perfecting and increasing the popularity of the "teardrop" shot, which he often used to shoot over much larger defenders.
On June 6, 2011, Jackson was hired as head coach of theGolden State Warriors. He was the first head coach hired by new ownersJoe Lacob andPeter Guber. After inheriting a team that had made the playoffs just once in the previous 17 years, Jackson promised to turn the Warriors into a good defensive team and playoff contender,[7] but struggled to a 23–43 record in his first year during the lockout-shortened2011–12 season as the team suffered several injuries to key players while adjusting to a new system. In the2012–13 season, with strong performance fromStephen Curry andKlay Thompson, Jackson led the Warriors to a 47–35 record and a #6 seed in the Western Conference playoffs. It was the first time the Warriors had made the playoffs since the 2006–07 season. The Warriors defeated the Denver Nuggets 4–2 in the first round, but lost to the San Antonio Spurs 4–2 in the semifinals.[8]
Originally signed under a four-year, $8 million contract, Jackson earned two more years guaranteed on his contract in 2013, putting him under contract through 2014–15.[9] The following season, the Warriors improved to 51–31, the team's first season with 50 or more wins since1993–94.[10] They reached the playoffs in consecutive seasons for the first time since1992, but lost in the first round to theLos Angeles Clippers in seven games. On May 6, 2014, Jackson was removed as head coach of the Warriors. The Warriors' front office said the team was better than when Jackson arrived but felt a different coach was needed to win anNBA championship.[7][11] The following season, head coachSteve Kerr's Warriors won the team's first NBA title in 40 years.
Jackson's time as head coach of the Warriors was marred by allegations of intense religious rhetoric and homophobia.[12] Jackson had reportedly ranted about two staff members who were openly gay.[13]
Jackson worked as an analyst forNew Jersey Nets onYES Network, mostly withMarv Albert. He has also worked as an analyst forABC, teaming withMike Breen and former coachJeff Van Gundy.
At the end of the 2008 NBA season, Jackson unexpectedly quit his position with the YES Network. This move fueled speculation that Jackson would be replacingIsiah Thomas as coach of the New York Knicks, but Jackson said the rumors were untrue and the decision was based on a desire to stop commuting from Los Angeles and his contract with ABC.[14] Still, the rumors persisted until the Knicks hired formerPhoenix Suns head coachMike D'Antoni.
A basketball card depicting Jackson has gained notoriety for featuring theMenéndez brothers in the background watching as courtside spectators.[15]
On May 17, 2014, Jackson reached a multiyear agreement to return to ESPN as a game analyst.[16]
In May 2023, in the days following the announcement ofJoel Embiid as the2022–23 NBAMVP, but before the details of individual votes were known, there was public criticism—most notably byCharles Barkley onTNT'sInside the NBA—of the only voter (at that point still unnamed) who didn't include theDenver Nuggets centerNikola Jokić in his top five.[17] As the NBA released the individual voting ballots,[18] it was revealed that ESPN's analyst Jackson was the voter in question. Jackson immediately publicly apologized to the Nuggets and Jokić, stating that his exclusion of Jokić was a mistake and that "Jokić is not only in the MVP discussion and deserved to be on my ballot but is one of the greatest players in the history of this game and a top-10 center of all-time".[19]
Both Van Gundy and Jackson were let go by ESPN/ABC amid a wave of layoffs at the network on June 30 and July 31, 2023, respectively.[20][21][22] As a result,Doc Rivers andDoris Burke replaced the pair on the lead broadcast team.[23][24][25]
Jackson married singer and actressDesiree Coleman on July 29, 1990.[3] They have four children.[26] Jackson and Coleman divorced in 2017 after 27 years of marriage.[27] His son, Mark Jackson Jr., played for theManhattan Jaspers[28] for the 2012–13 season after transferring from theUniversity of Louisville.[29] He is the older brother ofAND1 streetballerTroy Jackson, better known as "Escalade". Troy Jackson died on February 20, 2011, at the age of 38.[30] Jackson is aChristian and a licensedminister.[14][31]
Jackson is of partialDominican descent, which qualified him to play for the national basketball team of the Dominican Republic.[32][33] However, FIBA ultimately refused to allow him to be added to the roster.[34]
In June 2012, Jackson revealed that he had been the target of an extortion threat based on an extramarital affair and nude photos taken in 2006. Jackson said that he initially made payments of several thousands of dollars to a stripper and her accomplice to keep quiet about the affair and the photos, but when the alleged extortionists increased their demands, Jackson went to theFBI and ultimately the alleged conspirators were named in felony criminal complaints. "I recognize the extremely poor judgment that I used both in having an affair six years ago—including the embarrassing communication I exhibited during that time," said Jackson, "and in attempting to deal with the extortion scheme at first by myself."[35]
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
| * | Led the league |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1987–88 | New York | 82 | 80 | 39.6 | .432 | .254 | .774 | 4.8 | 10.6 | 2.5 | .1 | 13.6 |
| 1988–89 | New York | 72 | 72 | 34.4 | .467 | .338 | .698 | 4.7 | 8.6 | 1.9 | .1 | 16.9 |
| 1989–90 | New York | 82 | 69 | 29.6 | .437 | .267 | .727 | 3.9 | 7.4 | 1.3 | .0 | 9.9 |
| 1990–91 | New York | 72 | 21 | 22.2 | .492 | .255 | .731 | 2.7 | 6.3 | .8 | .1 | 8.8 |
| 1991–92 | New York | 81 | 81 | 30.4 | .491 | .256 | .770 | 3.8 | 8.6 | 1.4 | .2 | 11.3 |
| 1992–93 | L.A. Clippers | 82 | 81 | 38.0 | .486 | .268 | .803 | 4.7 | 8.8 | 1.7 | .1 | 14.4 |
| 1993–94 | L.A. Clippers | 79 | 79 | 34.3 | .452 | .283 | .791 | 4.4 | 8.6 | 1.5 | .1 | 10.9 |
| 1994–95 | Indiana | 82* | 67 | 29.3 | .422 | .310 | .778 | 3.7 | 7.5 | 1.3 | .2 | 7.6 |
| 1995–96 | Indiana | 81 | 81 | 32.6 | .473 | .430 | .785 | 3.8 | 7.8 | 1.2 | .1 | 10.0 |
| 1996–97 | Denver | 52 | 52* | 38.5 | .425 | .397 | .801 | 5.2 | 12.3* | 1.0 | .2 | 10.4 |
| 1996–97 | Indiana | 30 | 30* | 35.1 | .427 | .316 | .766 | 4.1 | 9.8* | 1.5 | .1 | 9.0 |
| 1997–98 | Indiana | 82* | 82* | 29.4 | .416 | .314 | .761 | 3.9 | 8.7 | 1.0 | .0 | 8.3 |
| 1998–99 | Indiana | 49 | 49 | 28.2 | .419 | .311 | .823 | 3.8 | 7.9 | .9 | .1 | 7.6 |
| 1999–2000 | Indiana | 81 | 81 | 27.0 | .432 | .403 | .806 | 3.7 | 8.0 | .9 | .1 | 8.1 |
| 2000–01 | Toronto | 54*[a] | 54* | 33.4 | .422 | .345 | .842 | 3.4 | 9.2 | 1.2 | .1 | 8.5 |
| 2000–01 | New York | 29*[a] | 28* | 27.1 | .411 | .310 | .529 | 4.1 | 5.6 | .7 | .0 | 5.9 |
| 2001–02 | New York | 82 | 81 | 28.9 | .439 | .405 | .791 | 3.8 | 7.4 | .9 | .0 | 8.4 |
| 2002–03 | Utah | 82 | 0 | 17.9 | .398 | .284 | .763 | 2.1 | 4.6 | .6 | .0 | 4.7 |
| 2003–04 | Houston | 42 | 3 | 13.7 | .340 | .171 | .718 | 1.7 | 2.8 | .4 | .0 | 2.5 |
| Career | 1,296 | 1,091 | 30.2 | .447 | .332 | .770 | 3.8 | 8.0 | 1.2 | .1 | 9.6 | |
| All-Star | 1 | 0 | 16.0 | .600 | 1.000 | .500 | 2.0 | 4.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 9.0 | |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | New York | 3 | — | 42.8 | .367 | .417 | .727 | 4.8 | 9.8 | 2.5 | .0 | 14.3 |
| 1989 | New York | 9 | — | 37.3 | .510 | .393 | .679 | 3.4 | 10.1 | 1.1 | .3 | 14.7 |
| 1990 | New York | 9 | — | 9.0 | .419 | .000 | .727 | .6 | 2.3 | .2 | .0 | 3.8 |
| 1991 | New York | 3 | 0 | 12.0 | .333 | — | — | .0 | 2.7 | .3 | .3 | .7 |
| 1992 | New York | 12 | 12 | 30.7 | .402 | .190 | .815 | 2.3 | 7.2 | .8 | .0 | 8.3 |
| 1993 | L.A. Clippers | 5 | 5 | 37.6 | .438 | .500 | .864 | 5.8 | 7.6 | 1.6 | .2 | 15.2 |
| 1995 | Indiana | 17 | 17 | 32.5 | .454 | .400 | .739 | 5.2 | 7.1 | .8 | .0 | 9.9 |
| 1996 | Indiana | 5 | 5 | 37.2 | .353 | .222 | .765 | 5.0 | 6.0 | 1.2 | .0 | 10.6 |
| 1998 | Indiana | 16 | 16 | 30.9 | .417 | .378 | .794 | 4.6 | 8.3 | 1.4 | .0 | 9.2 |
| 1999 | Indiana | 13 | 13 | 34.7 | .495 | .412 | .714 | 4.5 | 8.6 | 1.1 | .1 | 11.2 |
| 2000 | Indiana | 23 | 23 | 27.6 | .392 | .313 | .903 | 3.7 | 7.7 | .8 | .1 | 8.1 |
| 2001 | New York | 5 | 5 | 31.2 | .500 | .250 | 1.000 | 5.2 | 5.2 | 1.6 | .0 | 9.0 |
| 2003 | Utah | 5 | 0 | 16.6 | .500 | .556 | 1.000 | 1.0 | 3.2 | .6 | .0 | 7.2 |
| 2004 | Houston | 5 | 0 | 7.6 | .167 | .000 | — | .6 | 1.0 | .4 | .0 | .4 |
| Career | 131 | — | 28.8 | .432 | .345 | .777 | 3.6 | 6.9 | 1.0 | .1 | 9.0 | |
| Regular season | G | Games coached | W | Games won | L | Games lost | W–L % | Win–loss % |
| Playoffs | PG | Playoff games | PW | Playoff wins | PL | Playoff losses | PW–L % | Playoff win–loss % |
| Team | Year | G | W | L | W–L% | Finish | PG | PW | PL | PW–L% | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Golden State | 2011–12 | 66 | 23 | 43 | .348 | 4th inPacific | — | — | — | — | Missed playoffs |
| Golden State | 2012–13 | 82 | 47 | 35 | .573 | 2nd in Pacific | 12 | 6 | 6 | .500 | Lost inConference semifinals |
| Golden State | 2013–14 | 82 | 51 | 31 | .622 | 2nd in Pacific | 7 | 3 | 4 | .429 | Lost inFirst round |
| Career | 230 | 121 | 109 | .526 | 19 | 9 | 10 | .474 | |||
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