Utah Jazz Notes: Trail Blazers Visiting, Gobert Jerseys & Other News
By Ryan Aston
Former NBA player Jerome Kersey addresses a group of kids on the basketball court in the Naval Air Facility, Atsugi, Japan Ranger Gym. U.S. Navy Photo by PH2(AW) Joshua.C. Millage
Jerome Kersey Dies at 52—In what was no doubt the saddest development in the days leading up to the trade deadline, Blazers great Jerome Kersey was found dead at the age of 52. The state medical examiner’s office in Oregon has determined that pulmonary thromboembolism was the cause of death, which was the result of a blood clot in Kersey’s leg.
In a classy move (from a classy guy), Blazers point-man Steve Blake will be hanging up Kersey’s old No. 25 and donning the No. 5 instead. Truly a great show of respect for an equally great man.
My fondest (or perhaps not-so-fondest) memory of Kersey would have to be the monster game he dropped on the Jazz during the second round of the 1991 Playoffs. In the second game of the series, Kersey scored 34 points on 11 of 16 shooting and propelled the Blazers to a 118-116 victory.
I would expect that the Jazz honor Kersey with a moment of silence or something of the like when the two teams take to the court tonight. All of us at PnB offer our condolences to the Blazers, their fans and the Kersey family.
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