New York Knicks President Phil Jackson announced his engagement to Los Angeles Lakers executive Jeannie Buss was over on Tuesday.
"With mutual love and respect, we have decided to end our engagement," Jackson wrote on Twitter. "With the nature of our professional obligations and geographic distance between us, sustaining the relationships has been difficult."
Buss, the daughter of late Lakers owner Jerry Buss, and Jackson announced their engagement in January 2013. Jackson coached the Lakers to five titles during his 11 seasons with the team, a tenure that concluded after the 2010-11 season. He took his current job as a Knicks executive in 2011.
"Nothing but love and respect for this man," Buss said on Twitter.
Buss addressed the long-distances relationship with USA TODAY Sports in June 2015.
"He bought a place in the city," Buss said. "He's thinking about getting a place closer to the practice facility too. He's all in (laughs). I mean, certainly he serves at the behest of the owner, as everybody in this business, and so it's really for the owner to decide. But he signed a five-year commitment."
