Utah Jazz to honor Jerry Sloan with jersey patch

The Utah Jazz will honor a club legend as part of the NBA restart later this month.

On Tuesday, the Jazz announced that a tribute patch will be placed on club jerseys and warmups to commemorate Hall of Fame coach Jerry Sloan. Sloan died in May following a battle with Parkinson's disease and dementia.

The patch will carry the number "1,223," which represents the total number of games Utah won under Sloan during his 23 years as the team's coach. That patch debuts on July 23.

Additionally, the Jazz explained player jerseys will feature a similar "1,223" black patch during the 2020-21 campaign tentatively scheduled to begin on or around Dec. 1.

Fans may purchase a Sloan jersey patch from the Jazz team store. Proceeds benefit the Michael J. Fox Foundation, an organization leading the charge to discover a cure for Parkinson's disease.

Sloan first began working for the Jazz as a scout during the 1983-84 season, and he was appointed head coach in December 1988. He guided the franchise to consecutive NBA Finals appearances in 1997 and 1998.

According to ESPN Stats & Information, Sloan and Gregg Popovich of the San Antonio Spurs are the only coaches in NBA history to win at least 1,000 games with a single team.