Jerry Sloan
1996 USA Men's Olympic Team Assistant Coach
Utah Jazz head coach Jerry Sloan was named June 21, 1995, by the USA Basketball Men's Senior National Team Committee as an assistant coach to the 1996 USA Olympic Men's Basketball Team.
Jerry Sloan in 1995-96 completed his eighth season at the helm of the Utah Jazz and is the winningest coach in Jazz franchise history and the fifth winningest coach among active NBA coaches. In 11 seasons as an NBA head mentor, Sloan owns an overall career record of 549-381 (.590), while his Utah regular season record is 419-220 for a .656 winning percentage. Finishing 55-27 in 1995-96 and advancing to the Western Conference Finals, in 1994-95 Sloan led Utah to a 60-22 mark, setting a franchise-record for regular season wins. Guiding Jazz teams to 50 or more wins in six of his seven full campaigns as head coach, the Jazz under Sloan have captured two division titles and have made the playoffs every year he has been head coach. Currently ranking first among NBA coaches in tenure, his 513 regular season career coaching wins ranks him 17th all-time among NBA coaches and places him seventh among active league coaches.
Sloan proved himself on the court early as an outstanding college player at Evansville University (IN) where during his three seasons (1963-65) he compiled 1,320 points (15.5 ppg.) and 1,053 rebounds (12.4 rpg.), while leading the Purple Aces to a pair of NCAA Division II national championships, finishing with a 29-0 record senior year. For his efforts, Sloan was twice (1965, 1964) recognized as the Outstanding Player of the NCAA College Division Tournament.
The number one pick of the Baltimore Bullets in the 1965 NBA Draft, the following year Sloan was selected by Chicago in the expansion draft. A two-time NBA All-Star (1969, 1967) with the Bulls, Sloan established himself as one of the foremost defensive players of his day, earning All-Defensive team honors six times in a seven year span (1969-75). In 11 seasons as a NBA player, he compiled 10,571 points (14.0 ppg.) and 5,615 rebounds (7.4 rpg.).
When his playing career ended in 1976, Sloan scouted for the Bulls for two years before being named the team's head coach for a three-season term (1979-82). As the Bulls' head coach, Sloan led Chicago to a playoff berth in just his second season, finishing the year second in the division with a 45-37 record. Following his five years with the Bulls, Sloan scouted for Utah and then joined the Jazz coaching staff at the beginning of the 1984-85 season as an assistant to Frank Layden. He served as Layden's chief assistant until December 9, 1988, when Layden retired from coaching and Sloan was elevated to the head coaching position.
Sloan and his wife Bobbye make their home in Salt Lake City and also maintain a home in his hometown of McLeansboro, Ill. They're the parents of three children -- daughters Kathy and Holly, and son Brian.
