Jerry Sloan, the Hall of Fame basketball coach who spent a majority of his coaching career with the Utah Jazz and was a former NBA player with the Chicago Bulls, died on Friday. He was 78 years old.
Sloan announced in 2016 that he had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease and Lewy body dementia, a terrible combination of neurological disorders. Sloan said he decided to go public with the diagnosis because the symptoms were noticeable. He also told the "Salt Lake Tribune" he didn’t “want people feeling sorry for me.”
“Jerry Sloan will always be synonymous with the Utah Jazz," the team said in a statement. "He will forever be a part of the Utah Jazz organization and we join his family, friends and fans in mourning his loss. We are so thankful for what he accomplished here in Utah and the decades of dedication, loyalty and tenacity he brought to our franchise."
Sloan was one of the greatest coaches in NBA history and is No. 4 on the all-time winningest coaches list with 1,221 victories. Among coaches with at least 500 games coached, he is ninth with a .603 winning percentage.
Photo: Getty Images