[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 4]
[House]
[Page 5063]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                          HONORING JERRY SLOAN

  (Mr. SHIMKUS asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. SHIMKUS. Mr. Speaker, I want to congratulate a native southern 
Illinoisan and a living legend in the sport of basketball, Mr. Jerry 
Sloan of McLeansboro, Illinois, who retired recently as head coach of 
the NBA's Utah Jazz. Jerry never forgot his humble roots. Throughout 
his playing and coaching career, he exhibited a hard-work ethic, a 
down-to-Earth demeanor, and an unassuming style.
  Jerry ended what was the longest tenure with the same team of an 
active head coach in the four major sports leagues. He is third on the 
all-time NBA wins list with 1,221.
  Jerry was an outstanding athlete at McLeansboro High School and 
played college basketball at the University of Evansville, leading the 
Purple Aces to consecutive Division II national championships. He was 
drafted into the NBA by the Baltimore Bullets and then went to the 
Chicago Bulls in the expansion draft. He played 10 years with the Bulls 
and has his No. 4 jersey retired by the team.
  In 1979, Jerry was named head coach of the Bulls. He resigned in 1982 
and joined the Jazz as an assistant coach in 1984. He became the Jazz 
head coach in 1988. Jerry led the Jazz to the NBA finals twice. He was 
inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 2009. Jerry is a 
gracious, honest, tractor-loving guy. He will be missed in Utah, but 
those of us in southern Illinois will welcome the chance to see him 
more often.

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