Sloan merits coach honor

The Jazz had collapsed in a run of late turnovers Friday night, so I knew it wasn't the best time to bring up the Coach of the Year award.

Still, I had to ask. I wanted to know if winning the award would mean anything to Jerry Sloan.

"I have no desire to ever be a part of it," he said.

OK. Just asking.

He continued, "I've always felt it's not important, or if so, it should include the whole staff. I don't know how one guy can take credit. The other coaches are as important as I am — more important."

So it's official: Sloan isn't impressed. Give it to Gene Hackman, Nick Nolte or any of the other Hollywood coaches, for all he cares. Sloan doesn't spend enough time thinking about awards to actually hate them. It's just that they're so irrelevant, especially on a night his team overcame a 15-point deficit, only to lose.

That being the case, I'll argue on his behalf. This year, above all others, Sloan should be voted NBA Coach of the Year. Whether he wants it or not. Note to the academy: Vote early, vote often. To say Sloan doesn't deserve to be the league's top coach is to say Paul Simon never deserved a Grammy. There's a lot of talent out there, but how do you not recognize a guy for pulling together this bunch of spare parts?

Maybe he should win the award for his "body of work," like Henry Fonda.

If ever there was a year in which Sloan made a case, this is it.

His team had 31 wins going into Saturday's contest at Portland — two or three times as many as most basketball experts predicted. Some felt the Jazz would break the all-time mark for futility. With 19 games remaining, they are still in the race for a playoff spot.

Beyond that, he has shown adaptability. Most people thought once John Stockton and Karl Malone left, Sloan would retire. When that didn't happen, the assumption was few of the young players would buy into his philosophy. Now he has Andrei Kirilenko yammering happily in fractured English about defense. Raja Bell is so annoying at defense, opponents are taking shots back at him. After trading for Gordan Giricek, the team won five of six games before he knew all the plays (he missed Friday's game with the birth of a baby).

Long considered inflexible and stubborn, Sloan has adapted with the changes. He is more patient with young players than ever. Even after DeShawn Stevenson went on a profane tirade last spring during the playoffs, Sloan let the issue die after a one-game suspension.