MKRob Sports

Phil Jackson will return to coach the NBA champion Lakers for at least one more season, the Hall of Famer announced today.

Jackson, 63, received positive news on a battery of medical tests and made his decision known today.

He held an option on the two-year contract extension he signed in 2007. It’s believed he will be paid about $12 million for the 2009-10 season.

“After consulting with Lakers team internist Dr. John Moe, I feel confident that I can gainfully pursue an NBA season with another long postseason,” Jackson said in a statement posted on the team’s Web site. “All things point to go.”

Jackson completed his ninth season in two stints with the Lakers, winning his league-record 10 th title when they defeated the Orlando Magic, four games to one, last month. He has won four titles with the Lakers and six with Chicago.

During his tenure with the Lakers, Jackson has undergone two hip replacement surgeries, had an angioplasty and suffered from gout. He missed an exhibition game in Anaheim last October and a regular-season game in Portland in April because of swelling and pain in his lower legs attributed to plantar fasciitis.

Jackson suggested during a radio interview last week that he and the Lakers “toyed” with the idea of having him stay at home sometimes in 2009-10 while assistant coach Kurt Rambis coached the team on the road.

Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak then quashed the suggestion, telling reporters he

and Jackson had met and agreed it was impossible to do it that way. Kupchak said he expected Jackson to be a full-time coach if he returned.Jackson’s total of 1,041 victories ranks sixth on the league’s all-time list. In addition, his .705 winning percentage is the best in league history. He guided the Lakers to a 65-17 record during the 2008-09 regular season.

The Lakers won titles in 2000, 2001 and 2002 in his first stint with the team.