The news hit Jerry Sloan like a one-two punch, learning first of the death of his former Chicago teammate Norm Van Lier, followed by the death of his first Bulls coach Johnny 'Red' Kerr after a long battle with prostate cancer.
As subdued as the Jazz coach was Friday, Sloan still was able to draw some laughs as he shared stories about the brawls and scuffles that marked a bygone era in the NBA. "We were fairly competitive, to say the least," Sloan said. Sloan was a teammate with Kerr his rookie season with the Baltimore Bullets before both went to Chicago in the 1966 expansion draft. Kerr became the Bulls' first coach while Sloan helped lead the team to a 33-win season and playoff berth.
"I don't think that's happened in Basketball," Sloan said. "I don't know if it's happened [in] any other sport. At that particular time, I thought it was quite an accomplishment. I still think it is."
"We had a lot of guys that'd been displaced," Sloan added. "People had gotten rid of us. Everybody was trying to prove that they could play in the league. You don't know if you can or not when you've been thrown on an expansion team at times."
Van Lier arrived in a November 1971 trade from Cincinnati, having once been involved in a brawl with Sloan so out of control both tumbled outdoors. They played five seasons together in Chicago as one of the most hard-nosed backcourts the NBA has seen.
"Norm was a terrific competitor," said Sloan, who recalled Van Lier once having to be restrained from attacking Portland's Sidney Wicks with a chair. "He was a great teammate to play with. He put it out there every day in practice.
"We had a guy come in one day, didn't want to practice very hard. [Van Lier] was on him about as hard as you can get: 'We practice here. We don't come and take a vacation. We've got to do everything we can to try to win.'"
In statements released by the Jazz, Sloan remembered Van Lier as having baby-sat his kids and credited Kerr with giving him "the confidence to play in the league."
Both Sloan and Kerr are finalists for the Basketball Hall of Fame's Class of 2009. Sloan spoke with Kerr earlier this month before Kerr was honored by the Bulls and presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Hall.
Although Kerr had been in declining health, Van Lier's death was unexpected. He was found dead in his apartment Thursday morning at age 61 after failing to show up to work as a Bulls studio analyst the night before.
Sloan remembered Van Lier coming to Utah during last year's playoff series against Houston. He thought he was part of the broadcast team, only to learn differently. "It wasn't that, he was just coming out here to say hello," Sloan said. "And little do you know."
rsiler@sltrib.com
