Jerry Sloan

Jerry Sloan

Utah Jazz Legend | Top 15 Coaches in NBA History | “The Iron General”

“Rookies need to be seen and not heard.” – Jerry Sloan

Known as “The Original Bull” during his playing days in Chicago, Jerry Sloan carried that same blue-collar grit into a 26-year head coaching career, including a legendary 23-season tenure with the Utah Jazz. As of 2026, he remains the first coach in NBA history to win 1,000 games with a single franchise, a testament to a level of stability rarely seen in professional sports.

At the heart of his system was the “Flex” offense and the most iconic Pick-and-Roll duo in basketball history: John Stockton and Karl Malone. Sloan demanded that his players execute these sets with such precision that opponents were powerless to stop them, even when they knew exactly what was coming. Under his watch, the Jazz became a perennial powerhouse, reaching the NBA Playoffs 19 times and making back-to-back NBA Finals appearances in 1997 and 1998.

Beyond the Xs and Os, Sloan was a culture-builder. Despite his 1,221 career victories, placing him among the winningest coaches in history, Sloan never won an NBA Coach of the Year award.

Inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 2009, Sloan’s career serves as the ultimate blueprint for organizational consistency. He didn’t just coach a team; he established a standard of excellence that defined Utah basketball for a generation, proving that a relentless focus on the basics could build a Hall of Fame legacy.

  • Overall Coaching Record: 1221-803

Coaching Philosophy

Coaching Career

Jerry Sloan started his coaching career with his former team, the Chicago Bulls as an assistant under Ed Badger. His fellow assistant was Bumper Tormohlen. After one season Badger was fired and replaced with Larry Costello, who was fired mid-season in 1979. Sloan also met Phil Johnson, who would later become his lead assistant in Utah for over 20 seasons.

In 1980, the Bulls finished with a 45–37 record, semifinals losing to the Boston Celtics in 4 games.

In 1982, Sloan was fired mid-season after a 19-32 start, he was later replaced by Paul Westhead.

Notable Players Coached

  • Artis Gilmore
    • 1975 ABA champion
    • 1975 ABA Playoffs Most Valuable Player
    • 1972 ABA Most Valuable Player
    • 6× NBA All-Star (1978, 1979, 1981–1983, 1986)
    • 5× ABA All-Star (1972–1976)
    • ABA All-Star Game MVP (1974)
    • 5× All-ABA First Team (1972–1976)
    • 4× ABA All-Defensive First Team (1973–1976)
    • 1972 ABA Rookie of the Year
    • 1972 ABA All-Rookie First Team
    • 4× ABA rebounding champion (1972–1974, 1976)
    • ABA All-Time Team
  • Norm Van Lier
    • 3× NBA All-Star (1974, 1976, 1977)
    • 1974 All-NBA Second Team
    • 3× NBA All-Defensive First Team (1974, 1976, 1977)
    • 5× NBA All-Defensive Second Team (1971–1973, 1975, 1978)
    • 1971 NBA assists leader
  • Cazzie Russell
    • 1970 NBA champion
    • 1972 NBA All-Star
    • 1967 NBA All-Rookie First Team
  • Reggie Theus (2× NBA All-Star (1981, 1983) & 1979 NBA All-Rookie First Team)
  • David Greenwood (1990 NBA champion & 1980 NBA All-Rookie First Team)
  • Mark Landsberger (2× NBA champion (1980, 1982)

Coach Sloan was hired as an assistant coach under Frank Layden for the Utah Jazz. In his first season as an assistant coach, the Jazz finished with a 42–40 record, reaching the playoffs, but were eliminated early by the Dallas Mavericks in 4 games (3-1). The following season, they were eliminated in 5 games by the Golden State Warriors (3-2) and in 1988, they reached the semifinals but were eliminated by the Los Angeles Lakers in 7 games.

After an 11-6 start, Layden resigned as the head coach, Sloan would take on the permanent role. They finished the season with a 51–31 record, making the playoffs, where they met the Golden State Warriors in the first round, but were eliminated in 3 games (3-0)

  • 1998 NBA Finals: Lost to Chicago Bulls (4–2)
  • 1997 NBA Finals: Lost to Chicago Bulls (4–2)

Western Conference Finals

  • 1992: Lost to Portland Trail Blazers (4–2)
  • 1994: Lost to Houston Rockets (4–1)
  • 1996: Lost to Seattle SuperSonics (4–3)
  • 2007: Lost to San Antonio Spurs (4–1)

Western Conference Semifinals

  • 1991: Lost to Portland Trail Blazers (4–1)
  • 1993: Lost to Seattle SuperSonics (3–2)
  • 1995: Lost to Houston Rockets (3–2)
  • 1999: Lost to Portland Trail Blazers (4–2)
  • 2000: Lost to Portland Trail Blazers (4–1)
  • 2008: Lost to Los Angeles Lakers (4–2)
  • 2010: Lost to Los Angeles Lakers (4–0)

First Round Appearances

  • 1989: Lost to Golden State Warriors (3–0)
  • 1990: Lost to Phoenix Suns (3–2)
  • 2001: Lost to Dallas Mavericks (3–2)
  • 2002: Lost to Sacramento Kings (3–1)
  • 2003: Lost to Sacramento Kings (4–1)
  • 2009: Lost to Los Angeles Lakers (4–1)

On February 10, 2011, Sloan and longtime assistant coach Phil Johnson announced they would resign from their respective positions and retire from coaching. The Jazz had a 31-23 record and Sloan was succeeded by Tyrone Corbin, shooting consultant and former Jazz All-Star Jeff Hornacek was promoted to assistant coach.

On January 31, 2014, the Utah Jazz retired the number “1223”, the amount of wins Sloan had in the regular season and playoffs in franchise history.

Learn more about Jerry Sloan & Phil Johnson’s 40+ years of Coaching Together

Notable Players Coached

  • John Stockton
    • 10× NBA All-Star (1989–1997, 2000)
    • NBA All-Star Game co-MVP (1993)
    • 2× All-NBA First Team (1994, 1995)
    • 6× All-NBA Second Team (1988–1990, 1992, 1993, 1996)
    • 3x All-NBA Third Team (1991, 1997, 1999)
    • 5× NBA All-Defensive Second Team (1989, 1991, 1992, 1995, 1997)
    • 9× NBA assists leader (1988–1996)
    • 2× NBA steals leader (1989, 1992)
    • 50th & 75th NBA anniversary team selections
    • No. 12 retired by Utah Jazz
  • Karl Malone
    • 2× NBA Most Valuable Player (1997, 1999)
    • 14× NBA All-Star (1988–1998, 2000–2002)
    • 2× NBA All-Star Game MVP (1989, 1993[a])
    • 11× All-NBA First Team (1989–1999)
    • 2× All-NBA Second Team (1988, 2000)
    • 2001 All-NBA Third Team
    • 3× NBA All-Defensive First Team (1997–1999)
    • 1988 NBA All-Defensive Second Team
    • 1986 NBA All-Rookie First Team
    • 50th & 75th NBA anniversary team selections
    • No. 32 retired by Utah Jazz
  • Mark Eaton
    • 1989 NBA All-Star
    • 2× NBA Defensive Player of the Year (1985, 1989)
    • 3× NBA All-Defensive First Team (1985, 1986, 1989)
    • 2× NBA All-Defensive Second Team (1987, 1988)
    • 4× NBA blocks leader (1984, 1985, 1987, 1988)
    • No. 53 retired by Utah Jazz
  • Thurl Bailey
    • 1984 NBA All-Rookie First Team
    • Italian League All-Star Game MVP (1997)
    • Greek League All-Star (1994 II)
  • Darrell Griffith
    • 1981 NBA Rookie of the Year
    • NBA All-Rookie First Team (1981)
    • No. 35 retired by Utah Jazz
  • Jeff Malone
    • 2× NBA All-Star (1986, 1987)
    • NBA All-Rookie First Team (1984)
  • Tom Chambers
    • 4× NBA All-Star (1987, 1989–1991)
    • NBA All-Star Game MVP (1987)
    • 2× All-NBA Second Team (1989, 1990)
  • Andrei Kirilenko
    • 2004 NBA All-Star
    • 2006 NBA All-Defensive First Team
    • 2× NBA All-Defensive Second Team (2004, 2005)
    • 2002 NBA All-Rookie First Team
    • 2005 NBA blocks leader
  • James Donaldson (1988 NBA All-Star)
  • Jeff Hornacek
    • 1992 NBA All-Star
    • 2× NBA Three-Point Contest champion (1998, 2000)
    • No. 14 retired by Utah Jazz
  • Deron Williams
    • 3× NBA All-Star (2010–2012)
    • 2× All-NBA Second Team (2008, 2010)
    • 2006 NBA All-Rookie First Team
  • Paul Millsap
    • 4× NBA All-Star (2014–2017)
    • 2016 NBA All-Defensive Second Team
    • 2007 NBA All-Rookie Second Team
  • Isaac Austin (1997 NBA Most Improved Player)
  • Danny Manning
    • 2× NBA All-Star (1993, 1994)
    • 1998 NBA Sixth Man of the Year
  • Carlos Boozer
    • 2× NBA All-Star (2007, 2008)
    • All-NBA Third Team (2008)
    • NBA All-Rookie Second Team (2003)
  • Kyle Korver (2015 NBA All-Star)
  • John Starks
    • NBA All-Star (1994)
    • NBA All-Defensive Second Team (1993)
    • NBA Sixth Man of the Year (1997)
  • Mark Jackson
    • 1989 NBA All-Star
    • 1988 NBA Rookie of the Year
    • 1988 NBA All-Rookie First Team
    • 1997 NBA assists leader
  • Tom Gugliotta
    • 1997 NBA All-Star
    • 1993 NBA All-Rookie First Team
  • Mo Williams
    • 2016 NBA champion
    • 2009 NBA All-Star
  • Armen Gilliam
    • NBA All-Rookie First Team (1988)
    • 2006 ABA All-Star
    • 2006 ABA All-Star Game MVP
    • 2006 All-ABA Second Team
  • Gordon Hayward (Future 2017 NBA All-Star)
  • Rusty LaRue (1998 NBA champion)
  • Tony Massenburg (2005 NBA champion)
  • Shandon Anderson (2006 NBA champion)
  • Deshawn Stevenson (2011 NBA champion)
  • Greg Foster (2001 NBA champion)
  • Jacque Vaughn (NBA 2007 champion & Coach)
  • Tyrone Corbin (Utah Jazz Head Coach)
  • Howard Eisley (Future NBA & NCAA coach)
  • Jarron Collins (Future NBA coach)
  • Earl Watson (Future NBA head coach)
  • Marc Iavaroni (1983 NBA champion & Future NBA coach)