From Deseret News archives:
Utah Jazz: Milestone moment — Sloan at 20 years as coach
In case you've yet to buy a 20th anniversary gift — tradition calls for China, by the way — Sloan reached that special occasion today. Amazingly, he was hired on Dec. 9, 1988 to become Utah's coach after Frank Layden stepped away from the Jazz bench 17 games into that season.
A former player of Sloan's — one of the 123 different guys he's coached the past 21 seasons — remembers that day very well.
Not just because Layden quit.
Not just because Sloan was suddenly the head honcho, either.
Marc Iavaroni, who played in Utah from 1985-89 and is now Memphis' coach, vividly recalls the emotions that flowed that day at the Salt Palace — even from their new tough-as-nails-on-the-exterior coach.
Sloan learned from Layden the day before at a team function that he was going to be named the new head coach. But the players didn't find out until after their morning shootaround, shortly before a press conference.
It turned into a tender moment.
"Jerry went around and shook everybody's hand. He was bawling, crying, by the end of it," Iavaroni said. "I'll never forget it. There wasn't a dry eye in the house."
Layden jokes they might've been tears of joy, saying, "I think maybe some of the players were happy."
But Sloan says the team was attached to the fun-loving old coach — even if he had his grumpy moments — who helped lift the franchise from league laughingstock to Midwest Division champs in 1983-84.
"It was pretty emotional," Sloan said. "I think the players all liked Frank and they wanted to try to play well for him.
"Yeah," he added, "it was very emotional for me because I loved the guy."
Still does, too. Sloan says he'd still love to be Layden's assistant.
The feeling was — and is — mutual between the two men who've held the title of Jazz head coach since Layden replaced the fired Tom Nissalke on Dec. 10, 1981. That's why Layden decided he could quit when he did.
"I felt very comfortable with Jerry Sloan taking over," Layden said.
Layden predicted his successor would help the Jazz get "to the next level," which he says he couldn't and he's proud that Sloan indeed did.
"He has a passion for professional basketball that I never had," said Layden, who stayed with the franchise as president.
Layden actually almost quit — and wishes he would've — after the Jazz won their second division title and took the Lakers to seven games in the 1988 Western Conference semifinals.
