MINNEAPOLIS -- Minnesota fired coach Randy Wittman on Monday and brought former Boston Celtics great Kevin McHale back down from the front office to coach the Timberwolves for a second time.
Mark the handoff No. 223 on the list of NBA coaching changes since, exactly 20 years ago today, the Jazz tapped Jerry Sloan to succeed Frank Layden as coach in Utah. And color Sloan, who celebrates the anniversary when Jazz visit the 4-15 Timberwolves tonight, disappointed.
"I hate to hear that," Sloan said of the fourth coach firing in the NBA this season, along with those in Oklahoma City (P.J. Carlesimo), Washington (Eddie Jordan) and Toronto (Sam Mitchell).
The job status of at least two others -- Sacramento's Reggie Theus, who played for Sloan before he got fired in Chicago, and ex-Jazz big man Marc Iavaroni, now coaching in Memphis -- reportedly hangs in the balance.
"It's just a constant everyday thing," added Sloan, whose Jazz will be facing a team playing its first game with a new coach for the second time in just five nights. "I know how volatile this business is. I just think how lucky I've been to be here for as long as I have."
Just how has Sloan lasted so long?
Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, whose stay with San Antonio starting in 1996 has him a distant second on the NBA longevity list behind Sloan, has a hunch.
Popovich -- as Sloan often does -- cited the presence of longtime Jazz owner Larry H. Miller in Utah.
"There's a lot of trust involved there, and it's always about trust," Popovich said when the Jazz visited San Antonio last month.
"Because of his character, and his ability to do a good job for so long, he (Sloan) is completely trusted," Popovich added. "And he respects the organization in return and has found a good place -- both professionally and personally. So, he was smart enough to stay in it -- and keep it. The grass isn't always greener someplace else." Contributing: Jody Genessy E-mail: tbuckley@desnews.com
