Jerry Sloan, K.C. Jones Named Chuck Daly Lifetime Achievement Award Recipients
Longtime Utah Jazz coach Jerry Sloan and two-time championship-winning Boston Celtics coach K.C. Jones were honored in Cleveland Wednesday as recipients of the NBA's Chuck Daly Lifetime Achievement Award.
Steve Luhm of the Salt Lake Tribune reported the news of the winners of the award. The announcement came prior to the start of Game 3 of the NBA Finals between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors.
Sloan led the Jazz to 19 playoff berths during his tenure, highlighted by Finals appearances in 1997 and 1998. Jones won eight championships as a Celtics player before claiming two as a head coach and one as an assistant in Boston.
National Basketball Coaches Association president and Dallas Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle presented the award.
"It is a privilege to present this important award to two people who represent the absolute best in integrity and coaching excellence," said Carlisle, per Luhm. "Jerry Sloan is a coaching icon because of his longevity, adaptability and creativity."
Sloan said of receiving the award, per Luhm: "It's an honor to be part of it. ... I just thank my fellow coaches from the bottom of my heart. This is a very special honor."
Sloan said Jones is "a fine gentleman and outstanding coach." He continued: "I know, when I was a young player, he knocked my head off a few times."
"K.C. Jones and Jerry Sloan embody what the Chuck Daly Lifetime Achievement Award is all about," Carlisle said.
The accolade is named for the late Detroit Pistons head coach who guided the squad to back-to-back titles in 1989 and 1990. That was known as Detroit's "Bad Boys" heyday, and Daly also coached the 1992 USA Olympic Dream Team, which won a gold medal in Barcelona.
Jones and Sloan were Hall of Fame inductees in 1989 and 2009, respectively.
Sloan also had a strong playing career that spanned 11 seasons, primarily with the Chicago Bulls. He later coached the Bulls before landing in Utah and ultimately lost to Chicago in the aforementioned two NBA Finals against Michael Jordan-led teams.
