Jerry Sloan
Gerald Eugene Sloan (March 28, 1942 – May 22, 2020) was an American professional basketball player and coach. He played 11 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) before beginning a 30-year coaching career, 23 of which were spent as head coach of the Utah Jazz (1988–2011). NBA commissioner David Stern referred to Sloan as "one of the greatest and most respected coaches in NBA history".[1] Sloan was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2009.[2]
For the American aviator, see Jerri Sloan Truhill.Personal information
March 28, 1942
McLeansboro, Illinois, U.S.
May 22, 2020 (aged 78)
Salt Lake City, Utah, U.S.
6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
195 lb (88 kg)
McLeansboro
(McLeansboro, Illinois)
Evansville (1962–1965)
1965: 1st round, 4th overall pick
1965–1976
14, 4
1978–2011
Chicago Bulls (assistant)
Chicago Bulls
Utah Jazz (assistant)
Utah Jazz
10,571 (14.0 ppg)
5,615 (7.4 rpg)
1,925 (2.5 apg)
1,221–803 (.603)
After playing college basketball with the Evansville Purple Aces, Sloan was selected by the Baltimore Bullets with the fourth overall pick of the 1965 NBA draft. He spent his rookie season with the Bullets before playing the remainder of his career with the Chicago Bulls, retiring due to injuries in 1976. Nicknamed "the Original Bull", he was a two-time NBA All-Star, a six-time member of the All-Defensive Team and the first player to have his number retired by the Bulls. Sloan then became a coach, and had a career regular-season win–loss record of 1,221–803, placing him third all-time in NBA wins at the time he retired.[3] He was the fifth coach to reach 1,000 NBA victories and is one of two coaches in NBA history to record 1,000 wins with one club (the Utah Jazz). Sloan coached the Jazz to 15 consecutive playoff appearances from 1989 to 2003. He is one of only four coaches in NBA history with 15-plus consecutive seasons that have a winning record.[a][3] He led Utah to the NBA Finals in 1997 and 1998, but lost to Chicago both times.
After Tom Kelly stepped down as manager of the Minnesota Twins in Major League Baseball in 2001, Sloan became the longest-tenured head coach in American major league sports with their current franchise. He resigned mid-season from the Jazz in 2011 before returning in 2013 as an adviser and scouting consultant.
Early life[edit]
Born and raised in Gobbler's Knob, Illinois, 15 miles (24 km) south of McLeansboro,[4] Sloan was the youngest of 10 children and was raised by a single mother after his father died when Jerry was 4 years old. He would wake up at 4:30 a.m. to do farm chores and then walk almost two miles to get to school in time for 7 a.m. basketball practice. After school, he would walk back home from practice. Sloan graduated an all-state player from McLeansboro High School in 1960.[5]
Professional career[edit]
Sloan was selected fourth in the 1965 NBA draft by the Baltimore Bullets. The Chicago Bulls, an expansion team, selected Sloan in the 1966 NBA expansion draft. He became known as "the Original Bull", known for his tenacious defense, leading them to the playoffs in their first season, and to their first and only division title before the Michael Jordan era; after a series of knee injuries, he retired in 1976. He averaged more than 18 points a game in 1970–71, and over 15 points per game three other seasons.[7] Despite his height of only 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m), his career rebounding average was 7.4 rebounds per game, with one season having an average of 9.1 rebounds. He was a career 72 percent free throw shooter.[8] His number 4 jersey was subsequently retired by the Chicago Bulls in 1978, becoming the first retired jersey in franchise history.[9]
Personal life and death[edit]
Sloan married his high-school sweetheart, Bobbye. After a much-publicized six-year battle against breast cancer, she died of pancreatic cancer in 2004.[35] They had three children and were married 41 years.
In 2006, Sloan married Tammy Jessop, in Salt Lake City. Sloan had a stepson as a result of this marriage.[36]
Sloan was known to wear John Deere hats,[4] and collected antique furniture and dolls.
[8] He also collected and restored tractors as a hobby.[37] After amassing a collection of 70 tractors, Sloan decided to sell all but two of them after a 35-year-old Allis-Chalmers tractor was stolen.[38][39]
In April 2016, Sloan was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease and Lewy body dementia.[40] He died on May 22, 2020, at age 78, from complications of the diseases.[41]