Former Houston Rockets guard Jim Jackson recently appeared on the “Podcast P” alongside nine-time NBA All-Star Paul George, discussing Damian Lillard being waived by the Milwaukee Bucks, defending Dallas Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison, and how he rejected a move to New Orleans.
Jackson famously played for 12 teams across his career, making him one of the biggest mercenaries in the NBA. Over 14 years, he played with the Mavericks, Rockets, Los Angeles Lakers, Atlanta Hawks, and seven other teams.
‘I Don’t Have To Do Anything’ — Ex-Rockets Guard Jim Jackson Reveals His Blatant Trade Rejection
Jackson spoke to George, revealing how he rejected a move to New Orleans during his time with the Rockets, despite spending only a single season in Houston before moving to Phoenix.
When finessing your way out of a trade works 👀
“I’m not going somewhere I don’t wanna go … I wanted to take control of my career.” – @jimjackson419 pic.twitter.com/5mFTdNqDWJ
— Podcast P with Paul George (@PodcastPShow) July 9, 2025
“Jeff (Van Gundy) called me after Christmas, Boštjan Nachbar, and you getting traded to New Orleans, I was like, Huh? I ain’t going, I don’t have to do anything, I’m not going, so I ended up staying, I said I’m tired of being traded, I wanted to take control of my career.”
Despite rejecting the move to New Orleans, Jackson eventually ended up getting traded to Phoenix, where he spent a single season, before being traded to Los Angeles.
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However, the former Houston player did offer some reasoning for his decision not to play for the (then) New Orleans Hornets, citing his “age” as a reason, as he was entering the final years of his career. This ended up being true, as he retired three seasons later.
“I was 33 at the time. I told Byron Scott and the guys at New Orleans, ‘You’re going to try and trade me or do something in the offseason. If it were five years earlier, I’d love to play for you, but I’m not. Then I finagled my way to get to Phoenix,’” Jackson shared.
4/11/05 – Joe Johnson was 6-10 and Jim Jackson was 7-11 from 3 as the Phoenix #Suns set a franchise-record for 3’s in a game (19-37) in a 108-97 win at LAL, completing a 4-0 season sweep, PHX’s first vs LAL since 1992-93. The win was 58 on the year. Steve Nash: 15p/16a. pic.twitter.com/kHCTEZXvJH
— Arizona Sports History (@AZSportsHistory) April 12, 2025
After he was sent to the Suns, Jackson claimed that he witnessed basketball being played the way it should be: with complete freedom. He revealed one detail about his stint there: the fact that the Suns could have kept seven-time All-Star Joe Johnson.
“Man, Steve [Nash] was unreal. Joe Johnson was at 6’8″, doing crazy things. Amar’e [Stoudemire] was sick. Q-Rich [Quentin Richardson] was on that squad. The way they played — people don’t understand how special that was at the time.” Jackson shared, before going into detail on the trade.
Johnson, who was drafted 10th overall by the Boston Celtics in 2001, found his way to the Suns after a few seasons, where he quickly became a key piece of their offense and was a big reason the team won 62 games during the 2004-05 season.
However, Johnson left the team in 2005’s free agency. According to Jackson, the Suns were to blame for it because they weren’t willing to meet his price.
“Joe goes to Atlanta because earlier in that year, Phoenix could’ve paid him. They didn’t. They waited until the end, and Joe walked,” Jackson explained.
Ultimately, while both Johnson and the Suns did go on to do good things, things may have been different if they had just paid Johnson.