Among the myriad news items overwhelmed by the twin terrors of a global pandemic and national civil unrest over the past few weeks were the deaths of two NBA legends: Jerry Sloan and Wes Unseld.
Since “legend” is often thrown around loosely, let’s qualify it. Sloan was drafted in 1965 and was a part of the NBA virtually uninterrupted from then until his death – over an 11-year playing career, a 26-year coaching career and a lifetime ambassadorship with the Utah Jazz. Unseld came into the league in 1968, spent 13 seasons playing for the Bullets and later served as coach and general manager spanning their relocation from Baltimore to nearby Washington and forever will be the face of the franchise.