Phil Jackson on Andrea Bargnani: 'A big tease' who had a bad effect on the Knicks

Andrea Bargnani is no stranger to the term "enigma" - it's perhaps the word most associated with the former No. 1 overall pick.

Bryan Colangelo, the former Toronto Raptors general manager who drafted Bargnani in 2006, once referred to the Italian big man as "the enigma of all enigmas." Now, Phil Jackson has joined the chorus.

Jackson provided late-April evaluations of members of the 2014-15 Knicks in the most recent installment of ESPN's Phil Files, which document Jackson's first full season as New York Knicks president. The 13-time NBA champion saved his most scathing remarks for Bargnani.

"AB was and still is a big tease," Jackson said. "When he was injured he refused to do simple non-contact activities like dummy our offense in practice. He seemed to be a malingerer and this had a bad effect on the team, and also on the way the Knicks fans reacted to him.

"When he was on the court, he had a hard time staying intense, didn't hustle back in offense-to-defense transition, wasn't active enough in defending screen-rolls," the "Zen Master" said, harping on a point Raptors fans - and now Knicks fans - know all too well.

Bargnani's 14.8 points per game in 2014-15 represented his highest scoring average in three years, and he shot better than 36 percent from 3-point range for the first time in five years. Beyond that, it's tough to find many positives in his game.

Bargnani missed 53 games due to injury, marking the fourth consecutive season in which he missed at least 35 games. His defensive effort and rebounding numbers remained troubling, particularly for a big man earning $11.5 million.

The Brooklyn Nets won't have to worry about Bargnani living up to his contract after signing him for the veteran's minimum this summer, but after nine seasons in the Association, he is who he is as an NBA player, and the Nets shouldn't expect anything more.

As Jackson said, Bargnani "will always be somewhat of an enigma."