Jerry Sloan resigns from Jazz after 23 years..
Written by The Go-To-Man Mattie T. on February 10, 2011
After a head coaching career that lasted more than 23 years, Jerry Sloan has decided it’s time “to move on.”
The stunning decision came less than 24 hours after Utah’s 91-86 loss to Chicago on Wednesday evening, as Sloan clashed with both star guard Deron Williams & general manager Kevin O’Connor.
Williams denied rumors during a radio interview with KFAN 1320 in Salt Lake City on Thursday, but did acknowledge there was a “disagreement” with Sloan at halftime.
The decision was apparently made Wednesday evening following a closed-doors 30 minute meeting with Sloan & O’Connor that was reportedly “heated”, as it made Sloan late to his customary postgame press-conference.
Sloan downplayed the incidents during his press conference earlier on Thursday afternoon, stating that he’s had similiar situations with Hall of Famer Karl Malone often during their time together in Utah, which was a non-issue.
Sloan leaves the Jazz as the only head coach to win 1,000 games with one team, as he accomplished the feat on November 7th, 2010 against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
He’s also one of just three coaches who has had 15 consecutive seasons with a winning record. (Pat Riley & Phil Jackson).
Sloan’s 1,221 wins rank him 3rd among the NBA’s all-time winningest coaches behind only Lenny Wilkens & Don Nelson despite never winning Coach of the Year.
With Sloan’s depature, Tony La Russa is now the longest-tenured coach in professional sports with 15 years spent as the manager of the St. Louis Cardinals.
Former Jazz forward Tyrone Corbin will take over as the team’s head coach & will make his debut on Friday in Phoenix.
