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LOS ANGELES (AP) - The odds that Phil Jackson will return to coaching next season apparently have increased a bit.

Jackson's agent, Todd Musburger, said some time ago it was 50-50 that his client would be back on the bench next fall after taking this season off.

''I'll move the needle to 51-49 in favor of coaching,'' Musburger said Wednesday.

Several teams are interested, including the Los Angeles Lakers and New York Knicks. Musburger wouldn't identify other possibilities, but Cleveland, Portland and Minnesota are logical suitors. And Musburger wouldn't say whether Jackson has been offered a job.

The 59-year-old Jackson guided the Lakers to three championships in five years before he and the team went their separate ways last June - three days after the Lakers lost to the Detroit Pistons in the NBA Finals.

One thing seems certain - a final decision won't be made for some time.

''Phil is engaged in a process of talking about his coaching future with various NBA clubs and he will take whatever time is necessary to make some important decisions,'' Musburger said by telephone from Chicago. ''There is no timetable. There are no ultimatums and there are no dates in which something has to occur.

''I think everyone we have spoken to understands that a return to coaching is a big decision and should not be taken lightly. He'll be very careful before he says yes.''

Musburger confirmed that he and Jackson met Monday night with New York Knicks president Isiah Thomas in Los Angeles.

Musburger called the meeting ''an enjoyable and informative session,'' and said others would follow. Musburger returned to Chicago on Tuesday, and Jackson and Lakers owner Jerry Buss reportedly got together Tuesday night.

''I know they were planning on having dinner,'' Lakers spokesman John Black said Wednesday. ''It was informal and casual, a social dinner.''

Jackson accompanied Buss to a game at Staples Center earlier this month, and has visited the team's headquarters in nearby El Segundo several times to have lunch with Buss' daughter, Jeanie, his longtime girlfriend.

Jackson also spoke at length recently with general manager Mitch Kupchak.

The Lakers, coming off one of the worst seasons in franchise history, have an opening because Rudy Tomjanovich resigned Feb. 2, citing health concerns. Tomjanovich signed a five-year, $30 million US contract last summer as Jackson's successor.

Assistant Frank Hamblen took over when Tomjanovich left and the Lakers, hampered by injuries, lost 19 of their last 21 games to finish 34-48 and out of the playoffs for just the second time since 1976.

Kupchak said when Tomjanovich quit that there was an interest in Jackson. He confirmed that last week, the day after the season ended.

Jackson, who finished a five-year, $30 million contract last season, is expected to command a significant increase per year should he return to coaching. He has coached a record-tying nine NBA championship teams - six in Chicago and three in Los Angeles. Red Auerbach coached the Boston Celtics to nine titles.

The Vancouver Canucks' Todd Bertuzzi met with NHL officials Tuesday in New York seeking reinstatement from his indefinite suspension for his March 2004 punch on Steve Moore, who was then a member of the Colorado Avalanche. Moore is currently a free agent who, according to him, hasn't fully recovered from his injuries.

Delaying the decision on Todd Bertuzzi's NHL reinstatement is jeopardizing his chances of playing next season, says Bertuzzi's agent Pat Morris.

"Currently the elite European teams are looking for signings right now with the NHL players that they're pursuing, so those jobs are disappearing as we speak," Morris told Toronto all-sports radio station The Fan 590 on Wednesday.

Morris, who eluded the media after the hearing, told The Fan on Wednesday that a June or July decision may be too late for Bertuzzi to find somewhere to play.

"Possibly," said Morris. "At the end of the day, you want to have a backup plan for next year because we have no certainty over the NHL starting again. So as much as there doesn't appear to be any urgency from the other side, there's certainly urgency to know where we stand from Todd's point of view to play hockey somewhere next year."

Morris said the NHL gave no indication after Tuesday's seven-hour meeting as to when a decision may be rendered.

"None at all," said Morris. "They have volumes of information to go through and many notes that they were taking.

"I would anticipate given other duties that the commissioner (Gary Bettman) has that he'll take his time and render a fair decision based upon the excellent presentations that he heard yesterday."

Bertuzzi was handed an indefinite suspension for his March 8, 2004 attack on Moore. He missed the final 13 regular-season games and Vancouver's seven-game first-round playoff loss to Calgary. The suspension also meant Bertuzzi was not selected to Canada's team for the IIHF world championships that begin Saturday in Austria.

Moore sustained a broken neck, cuts and a concussion in the incident after he was dog piled after the blind side punch by Bertuzzi.

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