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Jerry Colangelo
Jerry Colangelo (born November 20, 1939) is an American businessman and sports executive. He formerly owned the Phoenix Suns of the NBA, the Phoenix Mercury of the WNBA, the Arizona Sandsharks of the Continental Indoor Soccer League, the Arizona Rattlers of the Arena Football League, and the Arizona Diamondbacks of Major League Baseball. He was also instrumental in the relocation of the original Winnipeg Jets team in the NHL to Phoenix to become the Phoenix Coyotes (later renamed to the Arizona Coyotes). In 2014, Grand Canyon University renamed its Christian based school of business after Colangelo, replacing Ken Blanchard's namesake. From December 2015 to April 2016, Colangelo served as chairman of basketball operations for the Philadelphia 76ers, before serving as a special advisor to the team until December 2018.
He became the youngest general manager in professional sports in 1968 after being hired to that position by the Phoenix Suns. He holds the distinction of the second-longest tenure running an NBA franchise, exceeded only by that of Red Auerbach of the Boston Celtics.
In 2002, According to a KTAR interview Jerry Colangelo became an owner of 37,000 acres in Buckeye, AZ, in 2002, a master-planned site known as Douglas Ranch. The property was later acquired by The Howard Hughes Corporation in 2021 and renamed Teravalis.
In 2005, Colangelo was named director of USA Basketball, whose team represented the United States in the 2008 Beijing Olympics and 2010 FIBA World Championship. Since 2009, he has served as Chairman of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Colangelo also serves as Chairman of the National Italian American Foundation (NIAF), a nonprofit nonpartisan educational foundation that promotes Italian-American culture and heritage.
Colangelo was born and raised in Chicago Heights, Illinois, to an Italian-American working class family. He played basketball and baseball for Bloom Township High School. Colangelo enrolled at the University of Kansas, but transferred to the University of Illinois after prospective teammate Wilt Chamberlain left. He played basketball for the Illinois Fighting Illini, earned All-Big Ten honors, and captained the Illini as a senior. He was later inducted into the Illinois Basketball Hall of Fame. Colangelo also played two years of baseball at Illinois. In 1962, he graduated from the University of Illinois with a degree in physical education.
In his autobiography, How You Play the Game, Colangelo tells of working at the House of Charles, a tuxedo rental shop in Chicago Heights, after graduating from college.
Colangelo began his sports career in 1966 in professional basketball with the Chicago Bulls. He worked as a marketing director, scout, and assistant to the president of the team. In 1968, he left the Bulls and was hired as the first general manager of the expansion team, the Phoenix Suns. He was the youngest general manager in professional sports. When he and his family left for Arizona, he had $200 in his wallet.
Colangelo got off to an unlucky start, losing a 1969 coin flip to the Milwaukee Bucks for the rights to UCLA phenom Lew Alcindor (who became Kareem Abdul-Jabbar). The Suns were competitive during most of the 1970s, making it to the NBA Finals in 1976, but losing to the Boston Celtics in six games. Colangelo had two stints as head coach during that decade, compiling a record of 59 wins and 60 losses.
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Jerry Colangelo
Jerry Colangelo (born November 20, 1939) is an American businessman and sports executive. He formerly owned the Phoenix Suns of the NBA, the Phoenix Mercury of the WNBA, the Arizona Sandsharks of the Continental Indoor Soccer League, the Arizona Rattlers of the Arena Football League, and the Arizona Diamondbacks of Major League Baseball. He was also instrumental in the relocation of the original Winnipeg Jets team in the NHL to Phoenix to become the Phoenix Coyotes (later renamed to the Arizona Coyotes). In 2014, Grand Canyon University renamed its Christian based school of business after Colangelo, replacing Ken Blanchard's namesake. From December 2015 to April 2016, Colangelo served as chairman of basketball operations for the Philadelphia 76ers, before serving as a special advisor to the team until December 2018.
He became the youngest general manager in professional sports in 1968 after being hired to that position by the Phoenix Suns. He holds the distinction of the second-longest tenure running an NBA franchise, exceeded only by that of Red Auerbach of the Boston Celtics.
In 2002, According to a KTAR interview Jerry Colangelo became an owner of 37,000 acres in Buckeye, AZ, in 2002, a master-planned site known as Douglas Ranch. The property was later acquired by The Howard Hughes Corporation in 2021 and renamed Teravalis.
In 2005, Colangelo was named director of USA Basketball, whose team represented the United States in the 2008 Beijing Olympics and 2010 FIBA World Championship. Since 2009, he has served as Chairman of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Colangelo also serves as Chairman of the National Italian American Foundation (NIAF), a nonprofit nonpartisan educational foundation that promotes Italian-American culture and heritage.
Colangelo was born and raised in Chicago Heights, Illinois, to an Italian-American working class family. He played basketball and baseball for Bloom Township High School. Colangelo enrolled at the University of Kansas, but transferred to the University of Illinois after prospective teammate Wilt Chamberlain left. He played basketball for the Illinois Fighting Illini, earned All-Big Ten honors, and captained the Illini as a senior. He was later inducted into the Illinois Basketball Hall of Fame. Colangelo also played two years of baseball at Illinois. In 1962, he graduated from the University of Illinois with a degree in physical education.
In his autobiography, How You Play the Game, Colangelo tells of working at the House of Charles, a tuxedo rental shop in Chicago Heights, after graduating from college.
Colangelo began his sports career in 1966 in professional basketball with the Chicago Bulls. He worked as a marketing director, scout, and assistant to the president of the team. In 1968, he left the Bulls and was hired as the first general manager of the expansion team, the Phoenix Suns. He was the youngest general manager in professional sports. When he and his family left for Arizona, he had $200 in his wallet.
Colangelo got off to an unlucky start, losing a 1969 coin flip to the Milwaukee Bucks for the rights to UCLA phenom Lew Alcindor (who became Kareem Abdul-Jabbar). The Suns were competitive during most of the 1970s, making it to the NBA Finals in 1976, but losing to the Boston Celtics in six games. Colangelo had two stints as head coach during that decade, compiling a record of 59 wins and 60 losses.