RIP Jerry Sloan

[framer]

I mean if they can't do a statue, I'm sure Jerry would be OK parking his favorite John Deere tractor right in the concourse of the Arena. . .

 

[NUMBERICA]

His most amazing coaching job. Those of us who were here remember that year.

Not following during that time of my life is probably my greatest regret in fandom.

 

[Getting Traded]

His most amazing coaching job. Those of us who were here remember that year.

Yes, and that year Harpring had probably his best season up to midseason, but then he got injured. As a result, I think the Jazz just missed the playoffs. That was a team, prognosticators pegged to win about 20 games.

 

[JimLes]

Yes, and that year Harpring had probably his best season up to midseason, but then he got injured. As a result, I think the Jazz just missed the playoffs. That was a team, prognosticators pegged to win about 20 games.

Harpring's advanced numbers that year actually suggest that he had quite the drop off from the year before and actually wasn't that good. The Jazz were 17-15 when he went down and they went 25-25 the rest of the year.

If you're going to look for a reason the Jazz didn't make the playoffs that year, it was that Kirilenko missed 4 games in January after he sprained his ankle in a tough OT loss against the Cavs where the Jazz were up 14 at the beginning of 4th. Harpring had already gone down for the season a few weeks earlier. The Jazz lost the Cavs game with a hobbled Kirilenko and then promptly lost all 4 games without him by an average of 14 points. The starting lineups in those 4 games were something to behold. One of those, the Jazz started Arroyo, Stevenson, Pavlović, Ruffin, and Ostertag. Oof!

If he doesn't roll his ankle against the Cavs, Jazz win that one and probably at least 1 of the 4 he missed. At that point, Jazz would've been 8th seed and playing the Wolves.