Raptors interested in Phil Jackson

...but not to coach them. Rather, to replace Bryan Colangelo.

Sources told ESPN.com this week that the Raptors have interest in talking with Jackson about the Pat Riley-style role he craves in charge of a team's basketball operations. ESPN.com reported last week that Jackson, after nearly two seasons in retirement, is itching to return to the NBA next season, preferably in a role similar to Riley's in Miami that allows him to oversee both the basketball department and the coaching staff or perhaps as a high-level consultant such as Jerry West in Golden State.

Leiweke is a major player in the sports industry and Jackson is very familiar with his work in Los Angeles, where Leiweke helped get the Staples Center built for the Los Angeles Lakers and Clippers as well as the NHL's Kings. Leiweke also has a longstanding working relationship with Lakers executive Jeanie Buss, Jackson's fiancee.

It'll definitely be interesting if it comes to fruition. It's difficult to argue against Jackson being the greatest coach in NBA history, but through the years there has been the suggestion that he benefitted greatly from inheriting teams that were more or less ready built for success. It's also been pointed out from time to time that Red Auerbach not only coached and built the Celtics Dynasty of the 50s and 60s, but also helped put together other championship teams in Boston in later years, strictly as an executive. For Jackson, it would be a different challenge to the situations he's been in before and certainly another feather in his cap if he can succeed in such a role.

It would be really a hell of a task to build a (long time) winner in Toronto. As you said, his success is tied to several HoF players (MJ/Pippen (and Rodman) and Shaq/Kobe (plus Malone and Payton) but it's success nontheless. So he could at least bring a winning spirit to the Raptors.
What he is really great about and what could be one reason for his success is his dealing with egos and his way to motivate his environment (3 Three-peat do not came out of nowhere). This could be a very useful skill to have for that Pat Riley style job he has in mind for some time.
I'm not gonna get into who was/is the better coach & executive: Red or the Zen Master, because Jackson has still to prove (sound funny if you say something like that about a guy with 13 rings...) if he'd succeed as an executive.
I'm still not sure whether he'd take a job offer that far away of LA...

Yeah, it certainly seems unlikely on paper but I guess you never know. It seems like Jim Buss is pretty determined to keep him away from the Lakers despite the brief discussions about bringing him back before they hired D'Antoni, so if he does return to the NBA it probably won't be with them. The Raptors seem like a longshot though.

I agree with you on how slim the chances are of seeing him within the Lakers organisation as long as Jim Buss has a word or two to say about it.
Toronto might also not be a bad choice for Phil, as the expectations aren't that incredibly high in the beginning. As you've said, it is a longshot with the possibility of improvement in nearly every area. So he really could put the Raptors his stamp on...

You see. Brian Colangelo sees himself as a Pat Riley. Formula for success: superstars at PF, SF, SG positions. Lakers had Gasol, MWP, Kobe. Celtics had KG, Pierce, Ray.

Most importantly, the Raptors resembles the Heat a lot. This is what best GM of the year Brian Coleslaw had in mind when building this team. Look.

Bosh = Bargnani : Neither can rebound but Barg is a better shooter.
LBJ = Gay : All around
Flash = Derozan : Slasher