Former Utah Jazz coach Jerry Sloan will have jersey retired by team
By Brad Rowland
It hasn’t been all sunshine and roses for the Utah Jazz since the trio of John Stockton, Karl Malone, and Jerry Sloan left Salt Lake City, but the team is reportedly aiming to grab a little bit of nostalgia during an upcoming game.
The Jazz will honor ex-head coach Jerry Sloan in a halftime ceremony vs Warriors on Jan. 31 in which a jersey will be retired in his honor.
— Marc J. Spears (@MarcJSpears) December 10, 2013
Marc Spears of Yahoo! (among others) is reporting that the Jazz will retire Jerry Sloan’s “jersey” during a January 31st game against Golden State, and this is unquestionably the right move. The jersey part of it is a bit odd, given that Sloan was a coach and not a player, but hanging his likeness from the rafters is fitting of the incredible career that Sloan had on the bench.
Sloan spent 23 years in a row on the Utah bench, which was easily the longest tenure of any NBA coach during that time period, and he amassed a 1,221-803 record (.603 winning percentage) and 2 NBA Finals appearances for his trouble. Those are obviously (quite) impressive, but I’ll remember Sloan for his beautiful execution of the pick-and-roll and hard-nosed persona as one of the most well-respected coaches in the league.