Utah Jazz: The ten most golden moments in franchise history
By Caleb Manser
2. Gail Miller keeps the Jazz a part of Utah forever
In order to understand the significance of this, one must know how much of a sacrifice it was on the Millers to purchase the Jazz.
There was a sale going on, and if somebody didn’t buy the team within three days they were going to move to Minnesota. As a young entrepreneur, Larry H. Miller decided to buy the team as it would benefit the Wasatch Front community.
He bought the first half for eight million dollars on April 11, 1985, then finished his purchase in September of 1989. The Jazz, once the laughingstock of the league, were on the rise to become one of the top franchises in the league in terms of win percentage and playoff appearances.
No, the Jazz never won a championship under Larry’s ownership. But that man was able to fill the seats in the arena consistently for the better part of three decades.
Eventually, Gail went on to finish his work ensuring the Jazz would stay in Utah permanently. Instead of having a single owner, the Utah Jazz now belong to a board of directors from the Larry H. Miller group of companies.
Gail is the chairman and the owner of the group of companies, but and she hires out the positions that run the team (CEO, President, General Manager, etc.) without getting in the way as other owners do sometimes.
All of the profit made from the team goes back to the team, and the Millers don’t see a penny of it. The team will stay in Utah and Salt Lake City forever.
Gail continues to uphold the highest of standards as an NBA owner and showing the utmost level of class and respect, which is the main reason why you have to love the Jazz.