Jerry Sloan to resign

[Mr.Bottomtooth]

KSL: Utah Jazz coach Jerry Sloan to resign
Published: Thursday, Feb. 10, 2011 11:29 a.m. MST
Scott G. Winterton, Deseret News

KSL has learned that Utah Jazz coach Jerry Sloan and assistant coach Phil Johnson will resign at a press conference later Thursday.

More details will be posted as they become available.

The news comes after the Jazz lost to Chicago in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, where former Jazz players Kyle Korver and Ronnie Brewer helped the Bulls escape Utah with a 91-86 win.

After the game, Sloan didn't come out of his office for a postgame interview until about a half-hour after his team lost for the 10th time in 14 games.

The Hall of Famer, who usually talks to reporters about 10 minutes after the final buzzer, had been in a discussion with general manager Kevin O'Connor.

"We just had something we had to discuss," Sloan said, "and we'll talk to you all later on about that." A major part of the discussion, however, was the possibility of a trade in the works.

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700108714/KSL-Utah-Jazz-coach-Jerry-Sloan-to-resign.html

[Mr.Bottomtooth]

Thought it was important enough to post here. Crazy news.

[koriwhat]

damn!

[arodz]

That's bizzare for a guy with his tenure to resign before the season's over.

[spurs_fan_in_exile]

Guess we can start calling Pop "the longest tenured coach in the NBA". One more superlative for him to bristle at.

[Mugen]

didnt sloan sign an extension this season too?

[FromWayDowntown]

Wow. That is big news. I thought Jerry might walk away a few years ago when his wife passed. Sloan has been an absolutely great coach in a place where it's tough to do that for as long as he has, with basically two different cores. As NBA characters go, I have a lot of admiration for him and think the league will be worse off with him.

Spurs-related in this sense: this now makes Pop the longest tenured NBA coach.

edit: Pop is longest tenured coach by a long shot. He assumed the head coach position on December 9, 1996. The next longest tenured coach (in his current position without lapse) is Doc Rivers, who was hired by Boston on April 29, 2004.

[Mugen]

this is what happens when ownership/fanbase only makes you select white guys in the lottery.

[coyotes_geek]

Damn. I hate the Jazz but I respect the hell out of Jerry Sloan. Sorry to see him go.

[Spurs Brazil]

:wow:wow:wow:wow:wow

[ElNono]

Wow... If it's strictly because of an issue with the team's performance, you really have to wonder how close is his relationship with Greg Miller. Something like this was unfathomable when Larry Miller was the owner.

[George Gervin's Afro]

Damn. I hate the Jazz but I respect the hell out of Jerry Sloan. Sorry to see him go.

[benefactor]

Very shocking indeed. I never pictured him doing it in the middle of a season.

[Mugen]

this better not mean some bullshit Jazz trade is about to go down. no way they would trade to the fucking lakers.

[jacobdrj]

Should have been fired in 1998-1999... If they couldn't see it then, certainly by 2006 he should have been canned.

[DJB]

Jerry Sloan's overrated, imho.

[benefactor]

It's amazing to think that in the 37 seasons the Jazz have existed, Sloan has been their coach for more than half of it.

[coyotes_geek]

It's amazing to think that in the 37 seasons the Jazz have existed, Sloan has been their coach for more than half of it.

Even more impressive that during Sloan's tenure they've only finished below .500 once.

[Budkin]

He was a pretty good coach but he could never ascend to the level he was at with Karl Malone and John Stockton. It would be like Phil Jackson not having Superstars on his team.

[benefactor]

Should have been fired in 1998-1999... If they couldn't see it then, certainly by 2006 he should have been canned.
It's kinda hard to can a guy who does this for you....

http://i133.photobucket.com/albums/q45/gospelrapper/sloan.jpg

A lot of fans would love to go to their bball reference page and see that.

[ohmwrecker]

Very shocking indeed. I never pictured him doing it in the middle of a season.

That's the most shocking part, but it was bound to happen.

Great coach, though.

[alchemist]

truly sad to see this man go if this is the case, Sloan is one of the greats of all time.

[Hemotivo]

Damn. I hate the Jazz but I respect the hell out of Jerry Sloan. Sorry to see him go.

this

[Solid D]

The NBA is a worse place without Jerry Sloan coaching. I doubt Phil Johnson will be looking for work, if Jerry retires. That guy is a great coach in his own right. He was head coach of Kansas City when Tiny Archibald was doing it all for the Kings. I think Phil even got a COY award one season.

Sad indeed.

[Mugen]

pretty much put a nail in the coffin to any hopes of Deron staying.

im guessin Dallas or the Lakers, with the Mavs being the favorite.

[Spurs Brazil]

WojYahooNBA
Nevertheless, this is an immense loss for the Jazz and NBA. Sloan is a standard and his run in Salt Lake won't be duplicated in pro ball.
Ty Corbin has the interest of several GM's who expect to make coaching changes this summer, and this could be way for Jazz to keep him.
Things changed for Sloan in Utah with passing of late owner Larry Miller. He could always get Miller to spend on players when it was needed.

[etbluffer]

didnt sloan sign an extension this season too?

He signed an extension this week!

[buttsR4rebounding]

How do you go from signing an extension at the beginning of the week to resigning at the end of the week. I'll believe it when I see it.

[ElNono]

Things changed for Sloan in Utah with passing of late owner Larry Miller. He could always get Miller to spend on players when it was needed.

You just could smell something like this is in play here... Larry Miller was a great owner too.
It's not just Sloan that needs to pay the price for the bad offseason moves the team made.

[FromWayDowntown]

For the record, here's a list of the order in which the current NBA coaches were hired by their clubs:

12/09/88 -- Jerry Sloan
12/10/96 -- Gregg Popovich
07/16/99 -- Phil Jackson (resigned 6/18/04; rehired 6/14/05)
04/29/04 -- Doc Rivers
01/27/05 -- George Karl
07/07/05 -- Nate McMillan
05/23/07 -- Rick Adelman
06/07/07 -- Stan Van Gundy
04/21/08 -- Scott Skiles
04/28/08 -- Eric Spoelstra
05/09/08 -- Rick Carlisle
05/13/08 -- Mike D'Antoni
01/25/09 -- Lionel Hollins
04/15/09 -- Scott Brooks
04/22/09 -- Flip Saunders
05/09/09 -- Alvin Gentry
05/11/09 -- Jay Triano
06/10/09 -- Paul Westphal
07/09/09 -- John Kuester
08/10/09 -- Kurt Rambis
05/21/10 -- Doug Collins
06/07/10 -- Monty Williams
06/13/10 -- Larry Drew
06/15/10 -- Avery Johnson
06/23/10 -- Tom Thibodeau
07/01/10 -- Byron Scott
07/07/10 -- Vinny Del Negro
09/27/10 -- Keith Smart
12/22/10 -- Paul Silas (interim)
01/30/11 -- Frank Vogel (interim)

[Mr.Bottomtooth]

He signed an extension this week!

On Monday, to be exact. Considering these events are about Jerry Sloan, this has got to be one of the strangest moves in NBA history.

[lefty]

This is what happened after yesterday's game:


tah's Jerry Sloan and GM Kevin O'Connor go at it The Jazz have been a pretty funky outfit all season. Supposedly one of the more staid yet well-inspired groups that this league has to offer, Utah has come out of the gate consistently this year as the NBA's worst first quarter team. And while Utah's many second half comebacks prove to their well ‘o mettle, the fact remains that this first half failing has cost Jerry Sloan's crew far more losses than it has wins. It's also the first year the team has played without Carlos Boozer (http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/players/3632/)(notes) (http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/players/3632/news), and though that may seem like a mitigating factor (as Boozer has averaged around 20 points and 10 rebounds in his first year with Chicago), his stats have been just about replaced by Paul Millsap (http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/players/4175/)(notes) (http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/players/4175/news) and Al Jefferson (http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/players/3832/)(notes) (http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/players/3832/news), and the Jazz would seem to be enjoying the first season since 2003-04 (think about that) that hasn't had either trade rumors involving Boozer, injury issues surrounding Boozer, or potential contract issues surrounding Boozer clouding the air. The guy has been a soap opera since his first few months with the Jazz, and with his return to Utah on Wednesday, the hope was that Utah could show their former forward just how well they're doing in his absence.
And while Boozer struggled, somewhat (14 points and six boards, four of his shots were blocked), the Chicago defense kept Utah at arm's length all night, and the Jazz lost yet another one. The team is now on pace for 47 wins, and is in danger of falling to third in their division behind the rapidly-improving Denver Nuggets (http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/teams/den/).
Following Wednesday's loss, both coach Sloan and Jazz GM Kevin O'Connor apparently had it behind closed doors, before sheepishly meeting the media:
Brian Smith, of the Salt Lake Tribune, has the details (http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/blogsjazznotes/51226806-62/connor-sloan-season-discussion.html.csp):
Sloan spent more than 30 minutes behind closed doors before finally speaking with the media. He was clearly disturbed during the initial portion of his postgame interview, and quickly answered two questions (http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/blogsjazznotes/51226573-62/sloan-discussion-game-interview.html.csp) about his meeting with O'Connor before saying that he would only discuss game-related queries and then trailing off in mid-sentence.
During and following the conversation involving Sloan and O'Connor, a practice scheduled for Thursday morning was abruptly canceled, forward Andrei Kirilenko (http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/players/3347/)(notes) (http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/players/3347/news) emerged from the coaches' room and not the locker room, and multiple players acknowledged that there was a weird vibe after the game. Meanwhile, Sloan vaguely hinted that an update would be provided in the future about his discussion involving O'Connor, while a request for an interview with O'Connor was quickly denied. However, no indication was given that anything drastic is expected to happen with the Jazz, Sloan or O'Connor.
Both Sloan and O'Connor are the longest-tenured people at their respective positions in the NBA, so they're clearly used to working together, but it's also clear that something's not as right as it could be in Utah, and there's no real shame in butting heads over it.


Kirilenko's presence in the meeting makes sense, as he hasn't been the same player since Boozer came out to Utah in 2004, and he's a constant thorn in Sloan's side with his gambling defense and iffy shot selection. Despite 5-14 shooting, Kirilenko played well on Wednesday, blocking four shots along with a 13-point, 10-rebound, two-assist, two-turnover, two-steal night. He also dominated Chicago's Luol Deng (http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/players/3824/)(notes) (http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/players/3824/news).


But the frustration is clearly there, in Utah. If Boozer's flight to Chicago was supposed to clear the air and usher in a new era, then the Jazz have fallen flat to start it. And if two old pros like Sloan and O'Connor can't see eye to eye, even if this is your typical moan-fest in the course of an eight-month season, you have to wonder what would work at this point.



http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/blog/bal...ysp_frm_woah=1 (http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/blog/ball_dont_lie/post/Utah-s-Jerry-Sloan-and-Kevin-O-Connor-go-at-it?urn=nba-319436&active_dimension=carousel_ept_sports_nba_experts&ysp_frm_woah=1)

[SpursRulez4eVeR]

noooooo...:(

[sa_butta]

This is sad news for the Jazz, Im sure the players will have some trouble adjusting...

[Fireball]

didnt sloan sign an extension this season too?

Yeah ... he resigned. Thats why I did not understand the breaking news at first.

[in2deep]

He found out Utah was about to trade Deron to the Lakers for a couple of bench scrubs

[Taco]

Something don't add up. Guess we'll have to wait for press conf.

[elec99]

Teams usually do better in the first few games after a coach leaves, I wonder if the same happens here.

[Mr.Bottomtooth]

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news;_ylt=AsmpNv.bSYWFLkdICSu04B68vLYF?slug=aw-sloanretiring021011

Sloan resigning after clash with Williams

By Adrian Wojnarowski and Marc J. Spears, Yahoo! Sports
26 minutes ago

After a 23-season Hall-of-Fame run as coach of the Utah Jazz, Jerry Sloan abruptly resigned his job on Thursday.

Sloan, 68, had agreed to a one-year contract extension in the past week but things publicly turned late Wednesday after a long meeting with Jazz general manager Kevin O’Connor following the team’s loss to the Chicago Bulls in Salt Lake City. Sloan and his longtime assistant, Phil Johnson, resigned together on Thursday. The Jazz planned a 5 p.m. ET news conference to officially make the announcement.

More From Yahoo! Sports Staff
All-Star reserves set Feb 3, 2011
Sloan’s relationship with point guard Deron Williams(notes) had grown progressively worse over the course of the season, league sources said, and the coach had tired of dealing with the team’s best player. The frustration escalated on Wednesday night when Sloan and Williams clashed in the locker room at halftime.

“He decided right there in halftime that he was done,” a league source told Yahoo! Sports. “He felt like ownership was listening more to Williams than they were to him anymore. He was done.”

One source said Sloan had become tired of Williams “blaming everything on everyone else.” Still, Williams, who can become a free agent in the summer of 2012, has remained the Jazz’s best and most consistent player after the departure of several key teammates. Williams has always had a reputation for wanting to win badly and being a strong leader.

Assistant coach Ty Corbin, who is expected to be a candidate for other head-coaching jobs next offseason, is believed to be the heir apparent. His agent, Steve Kauffman, was still waiting to hear from Jazz officials on Thursday afternoon about the naming of Corbin as the interim coach.

[Mr.Bottomtooth]

@tribjazz
Brian T. Smith
Sources say Sloan had lost team. One described situation as Deron Williams only staying if Sloan stepped down.

http://twitter.com/#!/tribjazz/status/35790446567362560

[Mr.Bottomtooth]

Extremely disappointing. Especially for Deron.

[Tobias]

RT @tribjazz: Sources say Sloan had lost team. One described situation as Deron Williams only staying if Sloan stepped down

Two sources say Wednesday's tension started when DWill ran different play than play called on sideline by Sloan, leading to halftime blowup
-- @STEIN_LINE_HQ

[Dr. Gonzo]

Screw the Jazz.

[timaios]

Unbelievable ! :wow

[Taco]

Extremely disappointing. Especially for Deron.

IT WILL BE INTRESTING TO SEE HOW JAZZ FANS REACT AT HIS NEXT HOME GAME INTRODUCTION :wakeup

[Tobias]

Honestly, im surprised the FO didn't just immediately trade Deron. I can't fathom why they'd side with a genuine star with a limited shelf life, versus their landmark of a coach.

[CGD]

Sad to see Sloan go, but it's apparent he's lost his players. Though it wasn't always the case, Pop's ability to successfully adapt his system to his players in recent years is quite admirable.

[spurs_fan_in_exile]

Honestly, im surprised the FO didn't just immediately trade Deron. I can't fathom why they'd side with a genuine star with a limited shelf life, versus their landmark of a coach.

Jerry had to be getting close to retirement even without this. Willilams, when healthy, is in the discussion for best PG in the league. As distastefull as it is to run a guy like Sloan out of a gig he's been in for 20 years I can understand how management would look at that equation and come down on the side of the who's got the longer NBA future ahead of him. Would have liked to have seen Sloan get a classier send off, but the guys running the show don't have the same connection that Sloan and Larry Miller had.

[Obstructed_View]

DWill all but intentionally threw the game in the fourth quarter last night. Should be an idea of what to expect without Sloan around.

[MarHill]

Sad to see Sloan go, but it's apparent he's lost his players. Though it wasn't always the case, Pop's ability to successfully adapt his system to his players in recent years is quite admirable.


Good point!

One of the smartest moves that Pop has done during his tenure with the Spurs is establish a relationship with TD.

The fact that TD lets Pop get on him and treats him like one of the guys and has been a major key is Pop's longevity as the coach.

Also, other players know that TD and Pop have such a relationship that everybody else has to fall in line or you will be gone.

:flag:

[concken]

didnt sloan sign an extension this season too?

I'm not sure of that. At one point, I could have sworn to have seen/hear/read something about his contract not getting renewed and the possibility of replacing him. Since we don't know all the details, it really would not surprise me if he announced his retirement for after the season.

[MarHill]

Obviously, I'm stunned like everyone else that Sloan will step down. Unfortunately, the star players have a lot of power in the NBA and if you are at odds with that player.....then even a coach of Sloan's reputation and caliber can be forced to leave.

[BG_Spurs_Fan]

Fuck the Jazz, hope they stay bottom of the NBA for a long time and beat Cleveland's losing record. :toast

[Baseline]

Never been a Deron Williams fan. Overrated IMO.

This casualty can be chalked up to the new NBA, where players rule the league. Obviously Sloan was a holdover from a much different era.

And obviously the Spurs are the lone team left where the coach still runs the ship.

[TDMVPDPOY]

this is fkn stupid, no player is bigger then the club

surely with no real PF presence is hurtin there team filled with a bunch of white euro softcocks...

trade deron and rebuild, keep the coach imo...

[TDomination]

wow, this is unexpected sad news. I hate to see him go.

I always hated the jazz during the stockton/malone era, but since then i've been indifferent about them. But I always respected the hell out of Sloan.

[CGD]

this is fkn stupid, no player is bigger then the club

surely with no real PF presence is hurtin there team filled with a bunch of white euro softcocks...

trade deron and rebuild, keep the coach imo...

Trading away your biggest draw is tough when you're a small market team...

[Mugen]

wow didnt expect that from Deron.

Sounds like hes got Laker written all over him. way to throw your whole team under the bus and let DRose punk you like that on your own floor.

Lost a lot of respect for him and hope he continues to choke in big games like he always does.

[timtonymanu]

Great coach. Sucks to see him go.

As for Deron Williams, another typical spoiled superstar. I have no respect for him anymore.

[alchemist]

Still can't believe this. NBA lost a bit of it's soul today.

[TDMVPDPOY]

Trading away your biggest draw is tough when you're a small market team...

they got a few expiring contracts on the team

trade deron for picks and shit

trade aljeff too

rebuild in the draft....get rid of that dont draft black guys horseshit the jizz has going atm...fck the mormons...

[coyotes_geek]

Trading away your biggest draw is tough when you're a small market team...

True. Then again it's also going to be tough when Deron finds out that whatever asskisser Utah hires to replace Sloan isn't near the coach Sloan was and he decides to bolt in free agency.

[Obstructed_View]

And obviously the Spurs are the lone team left where the coach still runs the ship.

Pop made some smart changes to keep from losing the team, such as playing young players and getting out and running. That said, it's looking like Pop was just lucky not to have Deron Williams on his team.

[Seventyniner]

I really thought the thread title meant "Sloan to re-sign", and I thought "he already did, right?" Stunning news, especially in the middle of the season.

[Brazil]

sad news really

it just shows us how much we are blessed to have players like tony, tp and manu. we can think what we want about tp but he never ever questionned his coach.

[concken]

so tony=timmy then?

deductive reasoning :downspin:

[PM5K]

Fuck Deron Williams.

I think it's pretty much a guarantee that this team won't ever be the same with Jerry Sloan. It's no coincidence or luck that the Jazz have had a winning record all but one season he's coached.

Seriously though, how many of us have looked at the standings year after year and been surprised to still see the Jazz in playoff contention? Regardless of injuries, lack of talent near the level of Stockton and Malone, etc.

It's just bullshit.

[spurs_fan_in_exile]

Fuck Deron Williams.

I think it's pretty much a guarantee that this team won't ever be the same with Jerry Sloan. It's no coincidence or luck that the Jazz have had a winning record all but one season he's coached.

Seriously though, how many of us have looked at the standings year after year and been surprised to still see the Jazz in playoff contention? Regardless of injuries, lack of talent near the level of Stockton and Malone, etc.

It's just bullshit.

Agreed. This is the first season I can remember thinking they were really underperforming. First season I can ever remember watching them play and thinking the looked either unfocused or complacent for big stretches. Utah has always been a bitch of a place for a road team because Jerry would always have that team playing hard there no matter what.

[PM5K]

I would have traded his ass. I can guarantee you that if hypothetically you were to trade Deron Williams, and replace Jerry Sloan, you'd wind up with a better player in return, than you would the coach you'd replace Sloan with.

If that makes any sense.

It's a sad day for the NBA because we're one step closer to that type of shit being okay for the rest of the league. Sloan and Pop were the only two really old school coaches. Part of what made Pop so good was that he'd yell at any player for fucking up from top to bottom, and it's also a props to Timmy that he'd take it, even if it was rare, and because Pop would dish it out, and Timmy would take it, none of the lesser players would ever have the balls to step to Pop.

Once Williams was allowed to run his mouth at Sloan, basically anyone and everyone else could too.

[TDMVPDPOY]

deron did come in looking like his carryin extra weight

[PM5K]

And another thing, Williams has been there what, six seasons? Jerry Sloan has been coaching the Jazz almost as long as Williams has been alive, with a winning record, if anyone is the problem here I'm sure you know who it is.

Oh yeah, and fuck deron williams.

[phxspurfan]

Maybe somebody can convince Jerry to join their team as an assistant (i.e. Pop)

[PM5K]

Jerry isn't an assistant. And props to his assistant for going down with Jerry, that's a friend right there.

[CubanMustGo]

Well, as Deron's tats say, "NOGUTS NOGLORY."

[TDMVPDPOY]

jazz go after one of our assistant coachs, we get sloan to become a replacement assistant

[toki9]

NBA is getting harder and harder to stomach each year...i'm sure i'll be done with the league once the Spurs' current guys are done...when Pop leaves, that'll probably the final straw...

[coyotes_geek]

Maybe somebody can convince Jerry to join their team as an assistant (i.e. Pop)

I'd love that, but I think Jerry calls it a career and we never hear from him again.

[m33p0]

just read the news on yahoo! truly a surprise. 23 seasons only for it to end that way.

[PM5K]

The best we can hope for is that a little bit of Jerry rubbed off on Tyrone Corbin, but who knows. Maybe he's too scared of Williams to run things the way he'd really like to.

[m33p0]

Maybe somebody can convince Jerry to join their team as an assistant (i.e. Pop)

i don't see it happening. i think he'll be glad to walk away from it all with really nothing to regret.

[PM5K]

Reminds me of when Kobe was pissing his pants and asking to be traded, then the basketball gods dropped Gasol in his lap and we haven't heard a word since.

Point being, don't shit your pants because you lost a few games, you're still in sixth place and you have a Hall Of Fame coach, don't shit your diaper kid.

[baseline bum]

Sad, sad day for the NBA. The blueprint for the Spurs championships was heavily based on Sloan and Larry Miller. You just see so much of Sloan in Pop.

[carina_gino20]

:wow Not good to see him go away like this after his legendary tenure in Utah.

[PM5K]

Did I say fuck deron williams yet?

[Muser]

Someone said it in the NBA forum, Jazz really fucked up last summer.

[TDMVPDPOY]

why didnt they resign boozer?

brewer and al jeff :(

[TDMVPDPOY]

why didnt they resign boozer?

brewer and al jeff :(

[hsxvvd]

I'd sooner trade williams to keep Sloan happy. Sloan is the Jazz, much like Coach K is Duke. Not many coaches have that in the NBA, if any.

Sad news, Jazz will certainly be worse of for it.

[PM5K]

They might have a short term uptick with a new coach, but I'd bet everything I have they won't have 22 of the next 23 years worth of winning seasons.

Fuck deron williams.

[silverblk mystix]

Fuck Deron Williams..

He was basically CAMPAIGNING to be a laker earlier in the season when he praised the lakers for being so great...before their game...

once the game started D. Williams did what he ALWAYS does when playing the lakers....BEND OVER and make it easy for the lakers to win...every fuckin' year the jazz-bend over at the mere sight of the lakers...and D. Will was actually doing it BEFORE the game even started...fuck D.Will...he belongs on that lakers team...

[poop]

He found out Utah was about to trade Deron to the Lakers for a couple of bench scrubs

[crc21209]

Just goes to show how lucky and spoiled us Spurs fans are. Deron Williams is supposed to be their FRANCHISE Superstar player, and he ran their hall of fame coach out of town....Wow. We're lucky to have Pop and the Big 3 in San Antonio...:tu

[benefactor]

Just goes to show how lucky and spoiled us Spurs fans are. Deron Williams is supposed to be their FRANCHISE Superstar player, and he ran their hall of fame coach out of town....Wow. We're lucky to have Pop and the Big 3 in San Antonio...:tu
:tu

[Pero]

Damn... Pretty shocking and sad.

[pjjrfan]

I've been a Jerry Sloan fan since he played for Chicago, I was a big Norm Van Lier and Sloan fanatic. The two manhandled many a backcourt in their day. As a coach this guy was from the old school and much like Pop I like how he gives it straight to everybody.

[Cane]

Just goes to show how lucky and spoiled us Spurs fans are. Deron Williams is supposed to be their FRANCHISE Superstar player, and he ran their hall of fame coach out of town....Wow. We're lucky to have Pop and the Big 3 in San Antonio...:tu

Deron's far from the only franchise player that Sloan's run into problems with, Karl Malone was no stranger to that and it was probably more than just Deron having problems with Sloan on this Jazz squad.

However San Antonio is damn lucky to have such a stable and winning franchise though and in many ways this organization is like an updated version of the Utah Jazz.. But I doubt any organization will have a coach tenured for as long as Sloan was. Here's to Sloan :toast And hopefully he doesn't coach the Lakers when Phil retires next season :wow

[Capt Bringdown]

Sloan is Pop without the rings. Team first, get over yourself, defense, etc. It's a shame to see him go out like this.

[Kori Ellis]

The basic synopsis looks like it was: Sloan wanted to suspend Deron after his antics last night - management didn't back him up, so Sloan said F this.

[Capt Bringdown]

I can't imagine Williams being too popular with the fanbase after this. Maybe he'll be shipped out of town...perhaps to be wearing the Purple and Gold soon.

[benefactor]

The basic synopsis looks like it was: Sloan wanted to suspend Deron after his antics last night - management didn't back him up, so Sloan said F this.
Good for him. He has no reason to bend to some kid who might have still been shitting the diaper when Sloan started coaching in Utah.

[toki9]

Good for him. He has no reason to bend to some kid who might have still been shitting the diaper when Sloan started coaching in Utah.

Well, Williams would have been 4 years old at the time...

[Cane]

I can't imagine Williams being too popular with the fanbase after this. Maybe he'll be shipped out of town...perhaps to be wearing the Purple and Gold soon.

Deron's facebook page was loaded with hate-filled posts from fans and I think he recently disabled that option since I can't see 'em anymore:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Deron-Williams/164265529615?v=wall

[PM5K]

Well, Williams would have been 4 years old at the time...

He said might have, and seeing the way he's acting now I wouldn't be surprised if he was shitting his diaper still at 4 years old. He's crying like a bitch and acting like a child at 26, so shitting his diaper at 4 wouldn't surprise me.

[PM5K]

I like this one:

"deron, I am a true Jazz fan, which means that I no longer support you. You are a disgrace to the uniform."

[Mugen]

cant believe the Jazz chose sloan over williams. pretty obvious that Deron is on his way out as soon as he can and he'll screw that franchise even more.

Like i said, he's got a Laker mentality and wouldnt be surprised if he ends up their very soon. just an overall bitch in my eyes.

Sloan deserved better than to go out like this. what a shit franchise.

[J_Paco]

Sad to see his tenure end in such a classless manner, but the NBA is a player's league. Once Sloan lost his best player, he essentially lost his job. Deron did it in an extremely poor manner, yet he did something that many players have done before him (Jordan and Magic). It'll be interesting to see where Utah goes from here. Will they become like New Orleans and involve Williams in front-office moves to appease him?

[TDMVPDPOY]

do the lakers even have money to sign deron?

[MannyIsGod]

Eh, Deron's a hell of a player and a huge competitor. I still like him. I think he'll look back on this as a mistake but keep in mind that losing that munch really weighs on competitors like him.

[toki9]

He said might have, and seeing the way he's acting now I wouldn't be surprised if he was shitting his diaper still at 4 years old. He's crying like a bitch and acting like a child at 26, so shitting his diaper at 4 wouldn't surprise me.

I wasn't correcting him. I'm sure there are many kids who took longer to get out of diapers. I was just providing the age data, not rendering opinion on the original comment.

[gospursgojas]

Fuck DWill. Just another example of the monster the NBA created by becoming a players league. When Pop leaves it'll probably be the end of me and the NBA.

[ploto]

Pop has always said that the Jazz are the best team in the league at execution. No more...

[carina_gino20]

Pop must feel rather lonely.

For an infinite number of reasons, SA is lucky to have Tim Duncan.

[baseline bum]

The basic synopsis looks like it was: Sloan wanted to suspend Deron after his antics last night - management didn't back him up, so Sloan said F this.

That's ridiculous. If there's one coach who consistently puts his players in positions to succeed, it's Jerry Sloan. Deron's never going to have another coach as good since Phil's retiring and Pop's not trading for him. What I would give to play for that guy. How many times has his system made scrub players look good and gotten them good contracts?

[TampaDude]

Wow...end of an era...

[dbestpro]

What happened to Sloan would never happen to Pop as long as RC and Holt are in charge. It would never have happened to Sloan either is the elder Miller was still alive. Miller junior is as much to blame as anyone for getting in the way.

It's kind of like a man who dumps his wife for a younger girl that he knows is gonna leave him for a richer man as soon as she can. Later on he'll think he should have kept the wife.

[baseline bum]

What happened to Sloan would never happen to Pop as long as RC and Holt are in charge. It would never have happened to Sloan either is the elder Miller was still alive. Miller junior is as much to blame as anyone for getting in the way.

It's kind of like a man who dumps his wife for a younger girl that he knows is gonna leave him for a richer man as soon as she can. Later on he'll think he should have kept the wife.

Good analogy, except the wife is Salma Hayek.

[Capt Bringdown]

Wonder how other NBA coaches feel about this. Williams is a good player, but nowhere near good enough to dislodge a coaching institution. It was one thing when Magic Johnson or Jordan pressured management for coaching changes, but Deron Williams? Fuck you, Williams.

[fantasyfootball]

Says a lot that Spurs fans think so highly of Sloan.

I always thought Sloan maximized the talent he had. I'm glad he went out on his own terms rather than getting pushed around from whoever it was.

[ChuckD]

What happened to Sloan would never happen to Pop as long as RC and Holt are in charge. It would never have happened to Sloan either is the elder Miller was still alive. Miller junior is as much to blame as anyone for getting in the way.

It's kind of like a man who dumps his wife for a younger girl that he knows is gonna leave him for a richer man as soon as she can. Later on he'll think he should have kept the wife.

Pop doesn't work for RC, he only works for Holt. Hist title is something like Head Coach and President of Basketball Operations. I think he's the only coach in the league that doesn't work for the GM.

[ChuckD]

Eh, Deron's a hell of a player and a huge competitor. I still like him. I think he'll look back on this as a mistake but keep in mind that losing that munch really weighs on competitors like him.

What losing? They're in a bad patch right now with some injuries, but in 6th place and probably would have challenged for the 4th seed. That's over. They're not talented enough to free-lance, and no coach is going to dare cross Deron now by actually calling some plays. He'll leave, because the fans will rightly turn on him.

[ChuckD]

Oh, and Deron? Those Lakers you admire so much, and think are so bad-ass?

THEY RUN A VERY STRUCTURED SYSTEM AND THEY CALL PLAYS.

[ajh18]

I think he'll look back on this as a mistake but keep in mind that losing that munch really weighs on competitors like him.

This is the problem though... these "competitors" look for excuses for the losses rather than putting it on themselves. It's part of this arrogance so many players have that if they're losing, OBVIOUSLY someone else is to blame.

Look in the mirror. For as good of a player as Deron is, and as much work as I'm sure he puts in, I'm Sloan is a better coach and I'm willing to bet put in even more work.

[PM5K]

Says a lot that Spurs fans think so highly of Sloan.

It's not Spurs fans, it's basketball fans.

[Danny.Zhu]

this better not mean some bullshit Jazz trade is about to go down. no way they would trade to the fucking lakers.

Hopefully not...

:depressed

[Obstructed_View]

What losing?

4-10 in their last 14 = losing

[MannyIsGod]

What losing? They're in a bad patch right now with some injuries, but in 6th place and probably would have challenged for the 4th seed. That's over. They're not talented enough to free-lance, and no coach is going to dare cross Deron now by actually calling some plays. He'll leave, because the fans will rightly turn on him.

You did read I said it was a mistake, right? For his career Deron has been a good player and a good coachable player so while this season has been poor I don't think it automatically makes him someone to despise.

[outmap]

I'll never forget Sloan's EPIC inbound plays! :)

I lost a lot of respect on Williams.

[toki9]

i wonder how Deron will do tomorrow night when Phoenix comes to Utah? And it'll be on ESPN.

[ChuckD]

You did read I said it was a mistake, right? For his career Deron has been a good player and a good coachable player so while this season has been poor I don't think it automatically makes him someone to despise.

I guess I place a higher penalty on throwing a HOF coach under the bus.

[ChuckD]

4-10 in their last 14 = losing

So, you have a bad patch during one basketball season, where you're still in the playoff race, and it's "that much losing"? What a fucking baby Deron is, if he can't wait out some injuries.

[ChuckD]

You did read I said it was a mistake, right? For his career Deron has been a good player and a good coachable player so while this season has been poor I don't think it automatically makes him someone to despise.

Boozer left, it became "his team", and he cracked. End of story.

[MannyIsGod]

I guess I place a higher penalty on throwing a HOF coach under the bus.

He didn't throw him under the bus, management did. You guys all seem to forget that management was the one that didn't back up Jerry Sloan. Sloan didn't retire because Williams didn't run a damn play - he did it because management didn't let him run the team.

[MannyIsGod]

Boozer left, it became "his team", and he cracked. End of story.

:lmao @ it being anyone other than William's team when Boozer was there. Boozer was shopped every season but it was somehow his team? Yeah OK.

[ducks]

told you people that d williams is overarrated

also this could hurt him signing with another team when he is fa

[ducks]

Has the jazz every won anything playing dirty ball with sloan

good riddance

[ducks]

Pop has always said that the Jazz are the best team in the league at execution. No more...

again how many titles?

pop was wrong
execution at perfection win titles

[ducks]

Good for him. He has no reason to bend to some kid who might have still been shitting the diaper when Sloan started coaching in Utah.

most superstars run the teams

ask peyton manning
james at ohio
kobe begged lakers to give big money to phil to keep coaching

the sprus franchise is ran different

[ducks]

this is fkn stupid, no player is bigger then the club

surely with no real PF presence is hurtin there team filled with a bunch of white euro softcocks...

trade deron and rebuild, keep the coach imo...
happens all the time

[ducks]

sloan was long due to get out of the jazz most overrated coach
he has never won anything
not even gone deep in the playoffs for a long long long time

[carina_gino20]

Deron Williams denies rumors, lashes out at media
(http://www.cbssports.com/mcc/blogs/entry/22748484/27473613)







Deron Williams denies rumors, lashes out at mediaPosted on: February 10, 2011 8:29 pm
Edited on: February 10, 2011 9:46 pmScore: 145

Utah Jazz guard Deron Williams denied and downplayed rumors that a disagreement between he and coach Jerry Sloan led to Sloan's resignation and lashed out at the media's portrayal of the situation. Posted by Ben Golliver.




On Thursday, Utah Jazz coach Jerry Sloan tendered his resignation, and rumors immediately began swirling that a rift had developed between Sloan and Utah's All-Star point guard Deron Williams.

In a Thursday afternoon interview with David Locke on KFAN 1320 in Salt Lake City, Williams downplayed those reports and lashed out at the media's treatment of the situation.

Williams began with his initial reaction to today's news: "It sucks. I didn't think he would ever retire in the middle of the season," Williams said. "I watched the press conference and he said it was his time."

Williams then took a swipe at reporters claming that he had a role in Sloan's departure. "All those guys, Ric Bucher, Chris Broussard, they're all in our locker room everyday," Williams deadpanned. "I'll let them report what they want to report, that's what they are paid to do. That's why I'm always short and rude with the media, because they're your friend. Ric comes in and sits by me every time I see him, acts like he's my friend, but the day they find something they want to spin, they jump on it. That's why I am the way I am and will continue to be the way I am."

...

He's got a point about the media...

[ducks]

money buys the media

d williams is one cheap motherfucker

[MannyIsGod]

And why the hell does Sloan get a pass on quiting on his players mid season? Thats pretty bad.

[ChuckD]

Deron Williams denies rumors, lashes out at mediaPosted on: February 10, 2011 8:29 pm
Edited on: February 10, 2011 9:46 pmScore: 145

Utah Jazz guard Deron Williams denied and downplayed rumors that a disagreement between he and coach Jerry Sloan led to Sloan's resignation and lashed out at the media's portrayal of the situation. Posted by Ben Golliver.




On Thursday, Utah Jazz coach Jerry Sloan tendered his resignation, and rumors immediately began swirling that a rift had developed between Sloan and Utah's All-Star point guard Deron Williams.

In a Thursday afternoon interview with David Locke on KFAN 1320 in Salt Lake City, Williams downplayed those reports and lashed out at the media's treatment of the situation.

Williams began with his initial reaction to today's news: "It sucks. I didn't think he would ever retire in the middle of the season," Williams said. "I watched the press conference and he said it was his time."

Williams then took a swipe at reporters claming that he had a role in Sloan's departure. "All those guys, Ric Bucher, Chris Broussard, they're all in our locker room everyday," Williams deadpanned. "I'll let them report what they want to report, that's what they are paid to do. That's why I'm always short and rude with the media, because they're your friend. Ric comes in and sits by me every time I see him, acts like he's my friend, but the day they find something they want to spin, they jump on it. That's why I am the way I am and will continue to be the way I am."

:lol Hey, bitch made...you're about to learn a new word: blowback. Can you say blowback? I knew you could.

Deron Williams is leaving anyway, because he doesn't have the balls to stay around and clean up his own mess. Just watch.

[ChuckD]

And why the hell does Sloan get a pass on quiting on his players mid season? Thats pretty bad.


DWill all but intentionally threw the game in the fourth quarter last night. Should be an idea of what to expect without Sloan around.

[Kori Ellis]

And why the hell does Sloan get a pass on quiting on his players mid season? Thats pretty bad.

Apparently, he wanted to discipline DWill and management sided against him. If his star player doesn't listen to him and management doesn't back him up, how could he possibly continue to coach? He has no power.

[ChuckD]

He didn't throw him under the bus, management did. You guys all seem to forget that management was the one that didn't back up Jerry Sloan. Sloan didn't retire because Williams didn't run a damn play - he did it because management didn't let him run the team.

Management is not without their blame here. The thing is, without a conflict with Deron, there is no management issue or role to misplay. They should know better, though. Cleveland kow-towed to every whim of LeBron's and he walked out anyway. Deron will, too. Just watch.

[JR3]

Messed up way to end a great thing. Wow.. People are shocked here in Utah. I talked to my friend here and he said that he was 4 when Sloan started as head coach. He knows nothing else but Sloan and the Jazz... the Jazz are not the Jazz without Sloan. He cried. Makes me wonder what it will be like when Pop leaves... I started being a fan when the spurs had John Lucas and Bob Hill... but most of my life, its been Pop.

[MannyIsGod]

Management has all the blame unless Deron went to them and asked to have Sloan removed.

[JR3]

I think Pop will hold to his word and leave when Tim leaves. That will be a hard pill to swallow man.

[MannyIsGod]

Well I know I won't cry (:lol ) but it will be a different team when Tim Duncan and Pop are gone. I love the other guys, but Tim Duncan and Pop are the rocks that this dynasty has been built on.

It will be a sad strange day. Thats for sure.

[MannyIsGod]

Apparently, he wanted to discipline DWill and management sided against him. If his star player doesn't listen to him and management doesn't back him up, how could he possibly continue to coach? He has no power.

Fair enough, but I have to wonder if we're getting all of the story here.

[Kori Ellis]

Fair enough, but I have to wonder if we're getting all of the story here.

Oh I'm sure this is just the straw that broke the camel's back. But apparently Deron has been a baby all year -- complaining about his teammates, not practicing, etc. I'm sure he was just setting up his excuses to leave Utah. He probably didn't think Sloan would quit midseason though.

[DesignatedT]

I think Pop will hold to his word and leave when Tim leaves. That will be a hard pill to swallow man.

He sure didn't seem like that was the case when he was interviewed up in Golden State. I'm not sure where the interview is but he made it sound like he would stick around post-duncan. who knows though.

[Libri]

Well I know I won't cry (:lol ) but it will be a different team when Tim Duncan and Pop are gone. I love the other guys, but Tim Duncan and Pop are the rocks that this dynasty has been built on.

It will be a sad strange day. Thats for sure.

The solution is simple. The Spurs need to pick another hall of fame player from the draft. :p: :lol

[ChuckD]

Management has all the blame unless Deron went to them and asked to have Sloan removed.

Deron was unhappy at the beginning of LAST season when they traded Ronnie Brewer to the Grizz and Eric Maynor to OKC for nothing. He was already making noises about opting out. If management made any mistakes, it was in not trading him between then and now. They'll almost certainly lose him for nothing next summer.

[JR3]

He sure didn't seem like that was the case when he was interviewed up in Golden State. I'm not sure where the interview is but he made it sound like he would stick around post-duncan. who knows though.

I hope he stays, but after watching sloan go out like this... unless the spurs draft another selfless star, I could see how Pop wouldn't want to deal with a Dwill. God forbid.

[Capt Bringdown]

"That's why I am the way I am and will continue to be the way I am."
Self-righteous calling card for many a narcissistic asshole.

[Capt Bringdown]

If it was an unrelated, individual decision that had nothing to do with his relationship with Sloan as Williams claimed, funny that Sloan's longtime assistant coach Phil Johnson resigned as well. Just a coincidence I suppose.

[GSH]

Sloan was a good coach - but not a great coach. And not just because he never won a championship. He knew the fundamentals of the game, and coached them as well as anyone ever has. But he was also an absolute bastard. And like it or not, the game is played by human beings.

A lot of people quietly wondered if he might have gotten more out of his teams, and out of his players as individuals, if not for all the late night drinking benders, and next morning hangovers. I remember talking to a Jazz scout, back when Malone and Stockton were still playing. He was talking about Sloan's drinking and hanging out in bars till all hours during the season. The comment I remember most was, "A man can't serve two masters, although Jerry is trying his best to." He didn't think that Sloan was ever able to get full value out of his own talents, because of the drinking.

For those of you who didn't know, think a little bit about Sloan's personality. Remind you of any drunks you ever knew? Didn't he ever strike you as somebody who could fly off the handle and beat the wife? Didn't you ever think he looked and sounded like maybe he had a few between the final buzzer and the post-game?

I think Sloan could have been a great coach. His teams have always been able to get more possessions in the last two minutes of a game than anyone else. And they have always run the pick and roll to absolute perfection. Those are both signs of the precision he drilled into his players. But there have always been too many nights when it seemed like he just wasn't into it. Not that he didn't pay attention. But too much of the time, his "adjustments" during a game consisted mostly of getting angry. And that only goes so far.

If you doubt me, check around. He was notorious for going on binges when he was a player. His marriage to his first wife was in the toilet when she got sick. There are plenty of people around who know what he was like after hours. Don't try to make him into more than he was, just because he stayed in one place for so many years. It's no accident that his teams never won a championship. They definitely had enough talent at times. Sloan has always had a habit of pissing on people. And most people aren't motivated much by that.

[spurs10]

D-Will might regret his part in this disrespectful treatment of a Hall of Fame coach. A career changing move in all likelihood.

[PM5K]

It's no accident that his teams never won a championship.

Yeah it's called Michael Jordan.

I swear there should be a silver Larry O'Brien trophy they give out to every team that had to play the Bulls in the Finals.

[bigfan]

Jerry Sloan has been and will always be a class act. I always considered the guy the second best coach in the league after Pop. He always got the most out of a questionable team and if there were issues between him and Williams and the GM backed Williams then it was time to pull the plug. Sloan was a noble foe. I see his replacement is Ty Corbin. Ty was a pretty damn good Spurs player back in the day and I remember when he left he was missed around here. Good luck to him in the future, the Jazz and the average Jazz fan seems to be pretty normal folks, not your average Phoenix/Laker/Boston/NY/Heat whining crybaby types.

[spurs10]

Didn't read your post GSH before I wrote mine. If he is such a notorious drunk, why would a place like Salt Lake City put up with him for decades and why would the NBA, Stockton, and many others hold him in such high regard? I'm not denying your comments, just wondering.

[TE]

Yeah it's called Michael Jordan.

I swear there should be a silver Larry O'Brien trophy they give out to every team that had to play the Bulls in the Finals.


This.


No one was denying Michael Jordan his rings.

[GSH]

Yeah it's called Michael Jordan.

I swear there should be a silver Larry O'Brien trophy they give out to every team that had to play the Bulls in the Finals.


How about I say it more plainly? He was a damned old drunk. He laid out in the bars half the night, even during the season. And when he was on a bad streak, which at times was fairly frequently, he yelled and bullied and belittled his players and assistants. The Jazz teams are known for going into slumps. Lots of them have been directly caused by Sloan and the way he treats people.

The first time the Jazz lost to the Bulls in the Finals? Sloan was out drinking after the losses. And you can argue that it never affected his coaching, but that's bullshit. Other coaches are watching film and getting some sleep. Not Sloan.

I feel kind of sorry for him at times. But Michael Jordan wasn't the only thing that kept him from winning a title.

[ducks]

Yeah it's called Michael Jordan.

I swear there should be a silver Larry O'Brien trophy they give out to every team that had to play the Bulls in the Finals.

mj retired a long time ago

[GSH]

Didn't read your post GSH before I wrote mine. If he is such a notorious drunk, why would a place like Salt Lake City put up with him for decades and why would the NBA, Stockton, and many others hold him in such high regard? I'm not denying your comments, just wondering.

Hold on just a second. I'm sure there are some references to it on the Internet. I'll find a couple, and you can decide for yourself. Check back in a few minutes.

[ducks]

Apparently, he wanted to discipline DWill and management sided against him. If his star player doesn't listen to him and management doesn't back him up, how could he possibly continue to coach? He has no power.

ask the colts how much power the coach has compared to peyton manning

[Kori Ellis]

Hold on just a second. I'm sure there are some references to it on the Internet. I'll find a couple, and you can decide for yourself. Check back in a few minutes.

He talked about it back in 2002 in SI. He said that he had a problem and quit for a while.

[howbouthemspurs]

Thats freakin crazy! Hes one of the best coaches in sports! he will be missed!

[ducks]

Deron was unhappy at the beginning of LAST season when they traded Ronnie Brewer to the Grizz and Eric Maynor to OKC for nothing. He was already making noises about opting out. If management made any mistakes, it was in not trading him between then and now. They'll almost certainly lose him for nothing next summer.

why he can pick his coach

byron scott?

[Fernando TD21]

Some Jazz fans are really pissed about this.
E4QSlEivEHg
Although I've seen some fans in a Jazz forum that are actually happy that Sloan is gone.

[GSH]

Didn't read your post GSH before I wrote mine. If he is such a notorious drunk, why would a place like Salt Lake City put up with him for decades and why would the NBA, Stockton, and many others hold him in such high regard? I'm not denying your comments, just wondering.

Here - this is a good start. http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/writers/jack_mccallum/02/10/sloan/index.html

Nobody is all bad or all good. Sloan can be a personable guy, and some people have thicker skin than others. He was a hell of a good coach, and I have utmost respect for that. But I just don't agree with trying to make him into something he wasn't.

And for the people who say that he was a class act? The old Jazz owner was a class act, right up until the day he died. (I still remember him letting the Spurs use his private jet to fly Timmy home after getting injured in Utah that time.) Sloan could be a class act at times. But he could also be a top-notch bastard.

All I'm saying is that motivating people is part of being a great coach. Like it or not, that has been a big part of Phil Jackson's success. And... in my opinion anyway, that is where Sloan came up short over the years. He alienated the shit out of too many players. (And assistants, and scouts, and ball boys.) And, again in my opinion, his teams' morale has gone to shit for weeks at a time over the years - and that always seemed to coincide with him being the biggest asshole.

I'm sure I'll catch the usual shit from some people who want to believe that he was a saint, or a coaching god. Whatever.

[Dex]

I hope he stays, but after watching sloan go out like this... unless the spurs draft another selfless star, I could see how Pop wouldn't want to deal with a Dwill. God forbid.

The difference, though, is that Pop wouldn't be dealing with anybody like Williams. He'd be dealing with the likes of Parker and Hill, Splitter and Blair, maybe Anderson. It's one of the bonuses to the Spurs' drafting of high character players: the example set by Tim is carried on by the team.

Tony or Manu could hold this team hostage just as easy as Tim, especially since both have to share shots and offensive responsibilities and could probably get more recognition on different teams. But they don't, and they never have, because they buy into the team concept.

It's going to be a big change for this team Post-Duncan. Losing Pop at the same time would only exacerbate the problem. While I think we all took Pop's jests seriously, his recent interview in Golden State left me feeling like he will probably stick around for a while after Tim goes. Too lazy to go digging for quotes, but it really sounded like he still has some coaching left in him.

[GSH]

He talked about it back in 2002 in SI. He said that he had a problem and quit for a while.


With respect to anyone who has ever had a drinking problem - I'm not judging anyone for that. But people who have drinking problems can't "quit for a while".

He has a lot of die-hard friends who have stuck with him. But if you have any contacts who are (or were) with the Jazz during that 97 Championship loss against the Bulls, ask them about it. A lot of people were more than a little bit pissed about his behavior during the Finals.

His insistence that it never affected his coaching is no different than him saying that he was going to quit drinking "for a while". He had a problem, and he wouldn't deal with it. And he alienated players just like he alienated his wife. I don't see how anyone can think that could be healthy for a team.

Is he ever a nice guy? Of course he is. But have you ever known someone who would drink and beat his wife - and then a day or two later he was full of remorse, and doing his best to be charming? You look closely at Jerry Sloan's behavior over the years, and see if it doesn't fit that pattern. And for the record, I've known guys like that whose buddies would swear was a great guy. And maybe they are great guys - except for when they are being abusive.

[spurs10]

GSH, thanks for the information. I've never known much about Sloan's personal life and one's professional life and personal are not often mutually exclusive in sports.

[Dex]

Not to derail the thread, but here's more info on those quotes by Pop. A link to the interview is also here:

http://blog.mysanantonio.com/spursnation/2011/01/25/pop-i-can-see-myself-coaching-for-awhile/

[Mugen]

pretty ironic that the bulls closed him out.

[Dex]

pretty ironic that the bulls closed him out.

:wow ouch.

[carina_gino20]

Before Manu signed his extension with the Spurs, he made sure Pop would be sticking around even after Tim's contract ends.

http://blog.mysanantonio.com/spursnation/2010/12/15/buck-harvey-ginobili-keeps-%E2%80%98the-old-man%E2%80%99-working/


“It was a long conversation,” Ginobili said. “But I wanted to know if he was planning on coaching just another year, or the length of my contract. I wanted to know.”

Popovich had always kidded he’d retire when Tim Duncan did, and Wednesday restated why he’d always said that. Duncan’s seven blocks were necessary, especially since Milwaukee’s Andrew Bogut had seven.

Popovich has also said in the past that he could see staying as the franchise transitions out of this era. For all of his outside interests, the game has a pull on him. His own contract likely does, too.

But Popovich never talked about how long, exactly, until Ginobili wanted to know. Asked about that Wednesday, Popovich responded as Ginobili did. With humor.

“Manu asked me a few questions before he signed,” he said. “I gave him whatever baloney I had to give him to get him to sign, and now I guess I’ve got to follow through somehow or another.”

[ducks]

bets when sloan picks up a dui

one week?

[PM5K]

he yelled and bullied and belittled his players and assistants.

I guess that's why his assistant went out with him after 23 years, because he was such a bad guy. He was also so unbearable that Stockton and Malone spent virtually their entire careers playing for him. He was such a horrible drunk that he was the longest tenured coach in all of pro sports.

What an asshole.....




















Deron Williams is.

[PM5K]

Williams is entitled to his opinion, but he should remember this: Over his quarter century of assistant and head coaching, Sloan has never (as far as I know) hung a player out to dry.

Read more: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/writers/jack_mccallum/02/10/sloan/index.html#ixzz1DcxNxyw4

[TampaDude]

Of course, now that Sloan has resigned, Pop is the longest tenured NBA coach with one team.

[Brutalis]

I thought he was going to step down after the season was over? He went ahead and left early??

[toki9]

Watched a bit of the Sloan press conference and I cringed when Miller began to explain how no one in the franchise--not player, management, him--had pushed Sloan out...my thoughts were: 1. That's a wildly inappropriate comment then the guy resigning is sitting right next to you; 2. Why address it so openly and publicly if there was really nothing to it? People will write whatever they'll write. Disavowing it publicly won't help your credibility. But it does make you look like you have guilty conscience.

[ace3g]

SpearsNBAYahoo Marc J. Spears
NBA should honor Jerry Sloan by asking him to coach West AllStars. Spurs Gregg Popovich probably wouldnt mind. Sloan probably humbly decline

[JonNOKC]

Here - this is a good start. http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/writers/jack_mccallum/02/10/sloan/index.html

Nobody is all bad or all good. Sloan can be a personable guy, and some people have thicker skin than others. He was a hell of a good coach, and I have utmost respect for that. But I just don't agree with trying to make him into something he wasn't.

And for the people who say that he was a class act? The old Jazz owner was a class act, right up until the day he died. (I still remember him letting the Spurs use his private jet to fly Timmy home after getting injured in Utah that time.) Sloan could be a class act at times. But he could also be a top-notch bastard.

All I'm saying is that motivating people is part of being a great coach. Like it or not, that has been a big part of Phil Jackson's success. And... in my opinion anyway, that is where Sloan came up short over the years. He alienated the shit out of too many players. (And assistants, and scouts, and ball boys.) And, again in my opinion, his teams' morale has gone to shit for weeks at a time over the years - and that always seemed to coincide with him being the biggest asshole.

I'm sure I'll catch the usual shit from some people who want to believe that he was a saint, or a coaching god. Whatever.

No one is making Sloan out to be a saint or god - just not sure why it so hard for some people to admit he was a great coach - as already been pointed out his best teams lost to MJ in the finals and he only had one losing season in 26 years. When you factor in injuries, free agency, the fact of being able to get players who have only known one coach for so many years to continue to respond and be motivated by you, and hearing what his peers have to say should tell you what you need to know about Sloan.

I don't understand why people can't just acknowledge someone's professional accomplishments without tearing them down because of their faults. Many players and coaches have had problems off the court. Wilt and Magic spent many late nights partying and sex (Wilt talks about 5 girls in one night/morning). MJ was as big a bastard, jerk, and gambler outside the court as anyone. Babe Ruth, Eddie Sutton, Pete Rose - the list goes on and on.

We don't know how much personal issues effects the professional side of someones career, and it is mere speculation to try and do so. Does anyone actually believe the if Sloan was not drinking (I don't know that he was or wasn't) in the finals his Jazz would of won?

Bottom line is he is known as one of the hardest workers in BB and was known to put in crazy hours working to be the best he could be. GSH & Ducks may know more BB than Pop or myself, but I think it is extremely difficult to not classify Sloan as a great coach. I do not like the Jazz, and I am not saying Sloan didn't have issues in his life, but on this day as he walks away from the game he lived to play/coach I prefer to give respect to his accomplishments.

[ploto]

He was talking about Sloan's drinking and hanging out in bars till all hours during the season.
You have any idea how many NBA players you just described- some who were superstars.

[balli]

He was talking about Sloan's drinking and hanging out in bars till all hours during the season.

Agree, with ploto, as if that is all that atypical. Or in any way constitutes the whole of his moral worth.

And then McCallum, as you conveniently ignore like an asshole, goes on to talk about Sloan's subsequent rise to sobriety when alcohol was becoming a problem.

And tbh, Sloan's not completely sober anymore. Sometimes he's goes and has a Bud Light and a cig or three at Lumpy's on Highland in SLC. So what?

[JR3]

How about I say it more plainly? He was a damned old drunk. He laid out in the bars half the night, even during the season. And when he was on a bad streak, which at times was fairly frequently, he yelled and bullied and belittled his players and assistants. The Jazz teams are known for going into slumps. Lots of them have been directly caused by Sloan and the way he treats people.

The first time the Jazz lost to the Bulls in the Finals? Sloan was out drinking after the losses. And you can argue that it never affected his coaching, but that's bullshit. Other coaches are watching film and getting some sleep. Not Sloan.

I feel kind of sorry for him at times. But Michael Jordan wasn't the only thing that kept him from winning a title.

Um... I live in salt lake and the bars close well before the jazz games are over. So unless he goes down to vegas all the time, I question this.

[balli]

Um... I live in salt lake and the bars close well before the jazz games are over. So unless he goes down to vegas all the time, I question this.

Ummmmm... not to question you, because you're defending Sloan. But I live in Salt Lake and the bars all close at 2 AM, last call being at 1. And make their living off of Jazz game crowds. So unless they changed the local start time of Jazz games to about 10:30, that's fairly inaccurate.

[JR3]

Ummmmm... not to question you, because you're defending Sloan. But I live in Salt Lake and the bars all close at 2 AM, last call being at 1. So unless they changed the local start time of Jazz games to about 10:30, that's fairly inaccurate.

Fair enough. You're right. Its hard to imagine Sloan at some of the low end bars I know are open that late. But if sloan does have a drinking problem, I'm sure he would make a way. I still doubt it though. Just me. Kinda beside the point though.:toast

[balli]

Fair enough. You're right. Its hard to imagine Sloan at some of the low end bars I know are open that late. But if sloan does have a drinking problem, I'm sure he would make a way. I still doubt it though. Just me. Kinda beside the point though.:toast

It is besides the point, but I just don't know what you're talking about. Every bar in the valley, including the cream of the crop like Bambara's bar and the Skybar stay open until at least the legally designated last call at 1 AM. All of them.

And yeah like I mentioned above, Sloan can sometimes, still rarely, be found in the uptown Lumpy's, a semi-dive, on off days, usually in the last afternoon/early evening.

[senorglory]

SpearsNBAYahoo Marc J. Spears
NBA should honor Jerry Sloan by asking him to coach West AllStars. Spurs Gregg Popovich probably wouldnt mind. Sloan probably humbly decline

even better, give Sloan Coach of the Year.

:smokin

[senorglory]

But Michael Jordan wasn't the only thing that kept him from winning a title.

http://ambasketball.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/act_scottie_pippen.jpg

[bishopospurs]

Jerry Sloan is from Gobbler's Knob, Ill... priceless!! I liked Sloan, hated his Jazz teams with Malone and Stockton because they were so tough in the playoffs, but I respect him for making those teams so tough.

[JR3]

It is besides the point, but I just don't know what you're talking about. Every bar in the valley, including the cream of the crop like Bambara's bar and the Skybar stay open until at least the legally designated last call at 1 AM. All of them.

And yeah like I mentioned above, Sloan can sometimes, still rarely, be found in the uptown Lumpy's, a semi-dive, on off days, usually in the last afternoon/early evening.

Sounds like I should do a little research before making my comments. I moved here from NYC just a year ago, so I'm not as up to speed on Utah Bar hours as you are. But I do know that "open late" has a very different meaning in New York.

[Whisky Dog]

Lots of hate on Deron without knowing the specifics of the situation.

iMO, based on limited outside knowledge, Larry Miller passed away and his kid wants to run the team on the cheap. They peak in '07 when they lost in the WCF to the Spurs, then the selling off of pieces like Brewer takes place. Boozer walks. Deron and Sloan are both pissed at this direction of cheap operation and the losing this season starts to boil over. Shit comes to a head between Deron and Sloan, as it does between coach and star player quite often in sports, and Sloan isn't backed up by mgt. so he decides to bail.

I don't blame him for leaving if mgt. isn't going to have his back, but just quitting mid season on his players isn't any different than a player who got replaced in the lineup and not having the support of his coach or GM quitting on the team mid season. At least see the season out and then walk away in May instead of quitting on the team. If a player gets called out for quitting when he's not being played and supported then Sloan should as well.

[balli]

I moved here from NYC just a year ago, so I'm not as up to speed on Utah Bar hours as you are. But I do know that "open late" has a very different meaning in New York.
:lol That matter of perspective, we can definitely agree on. Sorry about the move, hope it hasn't been too much of a culture shock.

[JR3]

:lol That matter of perspective, we can definitely agree on. Sorry about the move, hope it hasn't been too much of a culture shock.

lol its as much of a shock as you can get in a move whithout leaving the country. The move has been good though. Glad I got to go to some spurs jazz games with Sloan still coaching. =)

[Russ]

As far as I'm concerned, an icon of over 25 years has resigned.

(But enough about Mubarak.)

[Mugen]

WoJo's yahoo article on Sloan reeks of D-Will cock slurping.

another laker homer getting ready for when DWill bolts for the fakeshow as soon as he can.

he breaks a lot of news but he's one of the most pompous bball writers out there. he constantly bashes LeBron for all the same things he slurps Kobe for.

Fuck that guy.

rant/

[duncan228]

Buck Harvey: Popovich burns on, as Sloan could not (http://blog.mysanantonio.com/spursnation/2011/02/11/buck-harvey-popovich-burns-on-as-sloan-could-not/)
Buck Harvey

Gregg Popovich said exactly 10 words to his team after the game Friday night. Going by the results of the evening, they did well to hear 3.3 of them.

“We win as a team,” Popovich told them behind closed doors, “we lose as a team.”

Then he walked out of the locker room and took a similar slant with the media. “It didn’t go in the hole,” he shrugged.

But this is not how his night would likely end. Popovich would look at video with his assistants, and he would come up with a list of mistakes, and he would be ready to later correct the Spurs with more than 10 words.

After all the years, after all the similarities, this is why Popovich is finally different than Jerry Sloan.

Keep reading... (http://blog.mysanantonio.com/spursnation/2011/02/11/buck-harvey-popovich-burns-on-as-sloan-could-not/)

http://blog.mysanantonio.com/spursnation/2011/02/11/buck-harvey-popovich-burns-on-as-sloan-could-not/

[xmas1997]

This is clearly on management and partly on Williams.
If Mgn. won't back the coach when he has to discipline a player such as Williams, then what good can the coach accomplish after that?
It means the team is not, or soon will not, buying into the system.
He had no recourse at that point except to resign, and apparently his assistant felt the same way.
If you read Karl Malones' interview, he basically says the same thing and lays the blame on both Williams and Mgn.

[duncan228]

Malone says Sloan would never quit anything (http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=ap-sloanresignation-malone)
By Lynn DeBruin

An agitated Karl Malone says the Jerry Sloan he knows would never quit anything and suggested his longtime Utah Jazz coach just grew tired of garbage that came with the job and certain players.

“They changed the floor back to old school. They changed the uniform back to old school. Somebody tell the damn players to start playing like old school,” Malone said before the Jazz hosted the Phoenix Suns on Friday night. “It may work. They spent a lot of money on the rest, now how about you tell the players. I’m just calling it like I see it.”

Malone, who has exchanged phone messages with Sloan since his resignation, also took issue with some national analysts and players who were particularly critical of Sloan.

The most outspoken player in recent months had been star guard Deron Williams, who clashed with Sloan about the coach’s practice schedule and study demands.

“You’re a professional,” said Malone, a two-time NBA Most Valuable Player and one of greatest power forwards in league history. “You don’t need for me to break a film down for you. If you want to stop the guy you’re playing, they pay you millions of dollars. You get you a TV and break the player down yourself.”

Sloan and longtime assistant Phil Johnson both said they decided to step down after Wednesday’s emotional loss to Chicago. Their resignations were announced at a press conference Thursday that was not attended by a single player.

That alone irritated Malone, who was drafted in 1985—the year after Sloan first joined the Jazz as an assistant.

“I don’t even need to answer whether I would have been there or not,” said Malone, who followed Sloan and All-Star guard John Stockton into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 2009.

“If I got something to say or do to a man, I’m going to look that man in the eye and tell him what is going to happen. That’s just me now.”

He also took issue with analysts declaring the game had passed by Sloan.

“It’s like saying the game passed Phil Jackson by,” Malone said. “Old school worked. The players (have) got to buy into the system.”

Asked if he thinks the 68-year-old Sloan was forced out rather than voluntarily resigned because he had run out of energy, Malone reiterated his statement. “I said what I said earlier. The guy I know and love, he don’t quit or nothing,” Malone said.

Jazz president and CEO Randy Rigby downplayed Malone’s comments.

“Karl is Karl. That’s Karl,” Rigby said after Utah’s 95-83 loss to Phoenix. “And he’s right, Jerry isn’t a quitter. But it was Jerry’s decision and we’re going to support that. But I can tell you he was not forced out by any of us.”

Asked if today’s players have too much pull, Malone thought back to his own contentious battles with Sloan over the years.

“I remember (late team owner) Larry Miller in this locker room, right here when me and coach Sloan was butting heads after a game in front of everybody,” Malone recalled.

He said Miller would drop his head and not say a word but check on both player and coach a bit later. Sloan and Malone always said they were fine and asked about the other.

“Larry never got in that because he knew we’d work it out,” Malone said. “That’s the way it should be.”

Williams has denied forcing Sloan’s hands with a “me or him” ultimatum.

“Maybe arguing was the last straw, so there I am, guilty of that,” Williams said of a halftime clash with Sloan during Wednesday’s loss. “But I think anybody who believes I could force coach Sloan to resign is crazy. He’s stronger than that and personally if I said that to him, he’d probably go tell me to go do something.”

Williams received a loud round of applause when he was introduced before Friday night’s game but there also was a smattering of boos in the crowd.

Malone said it was purely coincidental that he had plans to attend Friday night’s game, which marked the debut for new Jazz coach Ty Corbin.

He lives in Louisiana and indicated his children were on a school break and wanted to see a game.

“We had planned this trip and low and behold I didn’t know all this would happen,” Malone said of the two resignations.

“I don’t know the details, but the way things appeared to have happened wasn’t good.”

Malone says he was besieged by calls on Thursday but chose not to return any.

“Thursday was not a good day for me to react,” he said. “People don’t understand. The whole NBA lost a man who put his heart and soul and everything else in it.”

Malone wished Corbin well but said he could never replace what was lost. He also reiterated a standing offer to help out in any way he can, especially with the organization at a crossroads.

“At some point in time I will be honored if I would be mentioned as a coach,” he said, noting the time may not be right now since his son is still in high school.

“Something I’ve always stated to the Jazz organization … I’ve always been a phone call away.

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=ap-sloanresignation-malone

[Mel_13]

Assessing Sloan: Call Him Coach
By PHIL MILLER

Phil Miller covered the Utah Jazz for The Salt Lake Tribune from 2002 to 2007.

Jerry Sloan’s coaching style was the subject of tributes and testimonials last week, but a more acute critique came a half-dozen years ago in the form of an ice bag in Greg Ostertag’s right hand. Fed up with Sloan’s postgame harangue about a Utah Jazz loss, the 7-foot-2 Ostertag chucked the handiest missile he could find at the silver-haired Sloan. Witnesses said Sloan simply ducked and continued his lecture unfazed.
Such was the practice of player relations during Sloan’s 23 seasons in Utah, an era that ended abruptly on Thursday with his resignation and that of his chief counsel, Phil Johnson.

“I’m not here to be loved,” Sloan said probably 100 times each season. But he was loved, or at least respected, by nearly everyone he came in contact with during his coaching tenure, the longest in N.B.A. history.

Even Ostertag, whose annual clashes with Sloan were almost as rote as a Stockton-to-Malone pick-and-roll, treasured their relationship. His was one of the first calls Sloan received upon announcing his departure.

Sloan’s public image, at least outside Utah, is one of intensity, ferocity, perhaps a touch of rage, all born of the courtside competitiveness that television cameras capture. He screams at his players, rants at referees. He is the N.B.A. career leader in technical fouls, and made headlines in 2003 by responding to a provocative remark by the referee Courtney Kirkland with a shove, a breach of decorum that earned a seven-game suspension.

The sideline lunatic of popular perception, however, is almost the antithesis of the off-the-court Sloan. He is witty and self-deprecating, considerate and generous; an hour before each home game, he routinely stationed himself on a corner of the court to sign autographs and pose for photos. In a league filled with Lamborghini egos, Sloan is pickup-truck humble.

His speech is peppered with southern Illinois slang and quaint country metaphors. He regularly compared the Jazz’s young players to horses approaching a fence, “and we’ll see whether they rear up.” He deplored it when they “played like they were wearing tuxedoes,” and disliked it when a game devolved into mere “jackpotting around.” If the players were not willing to work hard, he frequently said, “maybe someone will come along and give them a handful of candy.”

So unpretentious were Sloan and his staff, they ate their pregame meals in the media dining room, sitting among the reporters other coaches avoid. Though he never enjoyed interviews, he did not turn them down either. News-media relations is part of the job, he believed, and he detested the notion of not living up to his responsibilities.

Sloan would not allow his players to shirk them either. After one game in 2005, Sloan walked through the Jazz’s locker room and noticed reporters waiting. Told that most players routinely spent a half-hour in the trainer’s room, off limits to reporters, until the throng dissipated, Sloan strode into the trainer’s room. Thirty seconds later, 10 players filed out and took questions.

Sloan valued steadfastness in the face of challenge above all, and his teams were the model of discipline and teamwork, running precise screens and rigid patterns that stood out in a sport that increasingly embraced improvisation. His players were not allowed to wear headbands for fear of calling attention to the individual over the team.

But the line between perseverance and intransigence is thin. Sloan’s offense was either relentless or predictable, depending upon your view, and Deron Williams, with a competitive fire the equal of his coach’s, was only the latest player to chafe at the Jazz’s confining structure.

In the N.B.A., though, superstar players are too priceless to alienate, too important to silence, and Sloan seemed to sense that another internal battle might turn nuclear. Either he was unwilling to wage it — “My energy level has dropped off quite a bit,” he said at his farewell — or he feared the damage to the franchise that stuck with him.

And it was a shock to those who have watched him wage such battles for decades.

Karl Malone said Sloan once challenged him to a fistfight during a team huddle.

“He said, ‘I’ll fight you as long as I can see you,’” Malone said Friday at a news conference. “And I said, ‘It won’t be long.’ We laughed about it. That’s the coach I know.”

http://offthedribble.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/02/13/assessing-sloan-call-him-coach/