In 1973 Stu Jackson, Ernie Kent, Greg Ballard and Greg Graham became the newest members of Dick Harter’s Kamikaze Kids. Jackson, an agile small forward and fan favorite, helped the Ducks gain national prominence with his mid-range jumper and quick slashing to the basket. Harter maintained strict discipline and midway through Jackson’s junior year, he was relegated to the bench reportedly because of friction with his coach.
Even though his relationship with Harter was stormy, Jackson was later to say, “My relationship with Coach Harter was like lessons from a father. I’ve always deeply respected the man and did until his passing.” The following summer, injuries from a motorcycle accident effectively ended any thoughts of Jackson redeeming himself and he transferred to Seattle University.
Kamikaze Kids
After graduation, Jackson worked as a marketing representative for IBM before returning to his passion, basketball. He coached as an assistant for Rick Patino at Providence and had stops at Washington State and Oregon. In 1989 he was named coach of the New York Knicks becoming the youngest head coach in NBA history. The Knicks went 52-45 during his time there. In 1996 Jackson coached the Vancouver Grizzlies and he later coached the Wisconsin Badgers for two years, leading them to the NCAA Tournament.
In 2007, Jackson was named Executive Vice-President for the NBA and was in charge of on-court operations, scheduling and conduct review. In 2014, Jackson became the Commissioner for the Big East and currently oversees conference basketball operations.
Once a Duck, always a Duck; Jackson still roots for his alma mater.
FishDuck.com celebrates No. 32, Stu Jackson.
Top Photo from Video.
Raised in the Central Oregon mill town of Prineville beneath deep blue skies and rim rock, I attended the University of Oregon and during my collegiate summers, I worked in a lumber mill and also fought range fires on the Oregon High Desert for the Bureau of Land Management. After graduating from college at the University of Oregon, I swung from being budding hippy to cop work. I’m still wondering about how that came about. I was a police officer with the Port of Portland and after leaving police work, I obtained an MFA degree in Creative Writing from Vermont College. I live in Portland, Oregon with my wife, my daughter and a spunky bichon frise named Pumpkin. I’ve had short stories publishing in two Main Street Press anthologies. Harkness is my first novel.