Jerry Colangelo
Chairman/CEO Phoenix Suns, Arizona Diamondbacks
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Jerry Colangelo has been regarded as one of the top owners in professional sports. He is one of the latest members of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
Jerry moved to the Valley of the Sun in 1968 to take over the expansion Phoenix NBA franchise as the youngest general manager in professional sports. In addition, he brought Major League Baseball to the Valley in 1998 and serves as Managing General Partner of the Arizona Diamondbacks who won the World Series over the New York Yankees in thrilling fashion in 2001.
He was an outstanding athlete in his own right. He enrolled at the University of Kansas but transferred after his prospective teammate, Wilt Chamberlain, left the Jayhawks for a pro contract. He transferred to the University of Illinois where he earned All-Big Ten honors, captained the Fighting Illini as a senior and was later inducted into the Illinois Basketball Hall of Fame. He also played two years of baseball at Illinois.
The author of a book titled How You Play the Game, Jerry gives insight into the business world of sports and his own life. Proceeds from the book sales go to YoungLife of Arizona, Phoenix Suns Charities and Arizona Diamondbacks Charities.
He and wife, Joan, have four children, six granddaughters and four grandsons.
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