Phil Jackson: JR Smith was traded for 'delinquent behavior'

It appears that the great Phil Jackson’s public persona no longer includes a filter. The New York Knicks executive has been increasingly candid when speaking to the media in recent years—a fact that repeated itself in comments Jackson made for an ESPN piece on the team’s 2014-15 season.

And the guy that took most of the hits from Jackson was none other than current free agent J.R. Smith, who was traded from the Knicks to the Cleveland Cavaliers this past season.

“J.R. had been exhibiting some delinquent behavior and had gotten into the habit of coming late to team meetings, or missing them altogether,” Jackson says. “Also, Shumpert and Tim (Hardaway Jr.) were regressing, so I decided to meet…