They say you can't teach an old dog new tricks.

Far be it from anyone who has a an active brain cell to actually call Utah head coach Jerry Sloan an "old dog," but he is the longest-tenured coach in any professional franchise.

From inheriting the dynamic duo that was Karl Malone and John Stockton, trips to the NBA Finals to personal tragedy; the Jazz missing the playoffs in consecutive years for the first time in over a decade, back to the Western Conference Finals last season, Jerry Sloan has stayed on for every twist, turn, buck and kick life has thrown at him.

Not just 8 seconds, but over 20 years.

This year, after the leadership of Derek Fisher moved on to Los Angeles, he has coached the Utah Jazz to a 42-22 mark, up to and including exciting and convincing wins over Phoenix and Denver over the weekend.

"Jerry's been through every situation -- player and coach," Carlos Boozer, who's thrived under Sloan, said earlier this season.

"From a leadership perspective, we're fine."

While the road to coaching success has been a long and winding one, Sloan has never been one to waver, instead sticking with the straight and narrow, holding fast to the iron rod of his personal values and work ethic.

"He started coaching in Chicago and he wasn't really ready," recalls longtime Jazz broadcaster 'Hot' Rod Hundley. "Rod Thorn was the general manager then and he had to fire Jerry. Jerry took it as an education and went right back to work scouting, doing whatever he could do to stay in the NBA."

It is hard to argue with a work ethic that began with Jerry Sloan as a young man, working hard on farms as he grew up in the Midwest. To date, Sloan spends much of his offseasons working on his farm back in Illinois.

Moreover, that work ethic comes back to Salt Lake City with him every fall.

"He puts his imprint on the team," says Boozer. "Back when he started 20 years ago, he wanted a team of guys that was going to work hard together as a group and do whatever it takes to come together and win the game. That's what we do, that's what all of his teams have done, and that's why they've been so successful."

Even when the teams struggled after the subsequent retirements of Stockton, Malone and Jeff Hornacek, it was easy to be patient with Sloan and the Jazz because of Jerry Sloan's consistency.

Many other noted coaches and names in the NBA seem to be struggling with their teams and some have already lost their jobs because they have been either unable to balance discipline and consistency, or communicate with players who lack the desired level of consistency their coaches (and fans) expect.

"I don't think that he's ever hard; he just demands that his players work hard and play hard every game," said former Jazz center Greg Ostertag, who had more than his share of face-to-face conversations with Sloan over his career. "He understands that you're going to have some lulls where things aren't going well, but that's the way he coaches. He coaches you to play through it. Things will come around and work out for you in the end if you just keep playing hard.

"That's just Jerry. He's set in his ways. He's going to do it that way until he stops coaching. He can't go wrong. It's worked for over 20 years. Why not keep dancing with the one who brought you?"

Hundley recalls Sloan's transition from scout to head coach in the late 80s. "All of a sudden Frank Layden brought him in as an assistant along with Phil Johnson. Then he gave the team to Jerry and said, 'I quit.'

"As a broadcaster, I said, 'You've got Karl Malone who's 23 years old and John Stockton who's 22 and Sloan inherits this?' It was an instant success. He rode it for 18 years with both of them and did a great job. We had great teams. We could never win it all, but we're right there."

"Then we went down a little but then we signed (Andrei) Kirilenko, Mehmet Okur and Carlos Boozer 1-2-3, now we're back in there and competitive. Now we are 40-22 and Jerry gets the best out of those guys. Then you pick up Deron Williams and he's like another Stockton."

Midway through the season, the consistency of discipline and opinion caught up to one player who did not see eye-to-eye with Sloan. "(Gordan) Giricek, he wasn't doing much for the Jazz," said Hundley.

"(Sloan) doesn't want anyone on the team that won't answer to what he wants done. You don't argue with him -- you'll be going home."

Giricek found out the hard way. Days later, he would be traded to Philadelphia for Kyle Korver, who heard about Sloan's reputation coming in.

"He has the reputation of being tough, but he came in and told me that he'd be patient with me as I learned the offense," said Korver, who's been a key cog in the Jazz offense since his arrival. "He just has so much (credibility) that when he says something, you listen. He's done things the same way for a long time. It's worked for a long time, so you can't dispute what he says.

"He greets you in the morning, doesn't matter if you played like garbage the night before, he still says 'Hello.' He's the same every day. With someone who is consistent like that and who's done well with that consistency, you have to have a lot of respect for him."

"I think the biggest thing he has going for him is that he's a no-nonsense guy," added Hundley. "He gets the most out of the guys. He makes them work hard. He was that way as a player. I saw him play at Evansville and he was a no-nonsense guy there -- a rebounder, tough guy who really believes in defense. When he guarded a guy he'd get up there and bump him, get (his) body on him and he's been able to get that through to his players."

So while Scott Skiles has fallen by the wayside, and Pat Riley and Isiah Thomas seemingly fail to communicate with their young players, they might want to have the NBA wire Sloan … and learn a few things from the life lessons that Jerry Sloan brings to the basketball court every day.

Because in Utah, it is working … and has been for over two decades, just as it is in Houston, where one of Sloan's former teammates in Chicago is riding an 18-game win streak and resurrection with the Rockets, a team all but left for dead early on.

"They're from the same mold," says Hundley, who got to see both as players and as coaches in the league. "(Rick) Adelman and Jerry, they both have ultimate respect for each other and they both give credit to other guys."

Humility. Discipline. Consistency. Communication. Respect.

It seems such a simple recipe, yet few get it as readily as Sloan does.

"He brings the same mentality every day, whether it's practice or games," says Boozer. "It's great for us to have the same person leading the team. Jerry's been here for so long and he's not going anywhere."

However, the Jazz are deep in talent if he ever does decide to scrap the clipboard and don the John Deere cap for the rest of his life.

"Our owner was bring interviewed on the radio the other day and was asked, 'If Jerry all of a sudden decides to retire, who gets the job?'" Hundley recalled. "He said 'We'll probably give it to Phil right now.' But, of course, Phil's a year older than Jerry … he might not want it. Then he started talking about Scott Layden and Tyrone Corbin. He said, 'I don't see any reason if Jerry would walk away that we would have to go out of our own house to find a coach.' All those guys that are assistant coaches are learning the same thing (Jerry preaches).

"That's another thing about Sloan, he doesn't change. The game may change, but he stays the same. Well, he has come on a little bit with the three-point shot because the game has changed toward the three-point shot. He hated the three-point shot, but the other day he said, 'You know, I don't mind the three-point shot if they go in.' I can remember when Bryon Russell and those guys were playing and they'd shoot a three and miss it, he'd yank 'em. Kyle Korver -- he doesn't even look at him."

"He doesn't really say a whole lot to me," Korver added. "He says stuff when he has to. But I think he has confidence in me -- I'd like to think that anyway."

So, you can teach an old dog new tricks.

Funny how some things change, but how they really remain the same … and successfully so, despite the curveballs that retirements, Michael Jordan, and life in general throws you.

Sloan has dealt with them one by one and with the temerity of someone many should admire.

"You want to talk about ultimate respect, the owner loaded up over 150 people on a plane and went back there to Illinois for (Bobbye Sloan's) funeral," recalled Hundley. "It was sad, but it was beautifully done to hear everybody speaking about his wife. It's part of life and he came right back. He never changes. He's right there."

You wonder if life's adversities are what have molded Jerry Sloan's character … or if his character is what gets him through them.

One thing is for sure: He is not quite ready to turn the reins over to Johnson, Layden or Corbin.

"God, I thought he was done 10 years ago," Ostertag laughed. "But he'll leave when he's ready."

"I think he's going to keep doing it until he loses the fire," projects Boozer. "And that might be a long time … "

If you thought the retirements for Stockton, Malone, and Hornacek were tearful and appreciative, one could quite imagine what it will be like when Jerry Sloan takes that final trip to his Illinois farm.

Hundley's recollection of the years might sum it up best …

"It's been a nice ride."