A 37-year epoch career in Arizona sports ownership
recently came to a close as Jerry Colangelo, the
man responsible for launching the two most popular
professional Arizona sports franchises, cleaned out
his office at US Airways Center and headed off into
an Arizona sunset.
Currently acting as national team manager for the
2008 Olympic Team, Colangelo will continue to have
plenty to keep him busy in “retirement.” While he will
retain the title of chairman with the Suns franchise,
his exit, for all intents and purposes, is complete.
Colangelo said cleaning out his office was very
nostalgic. As the Arizona Republic’s Paola Bovin
commented in a recent column, “It was in that office
that Colangelo heard a pitch from (Rich) Dozer and
Maricopa County Supervisor Jim Bruner to help bring
Major League Baseball to Arizona,” and “It was in that
office that he made a deal with (Robert) Sarver to sell
the Suns.”
We once paid a visit to Mr. Colangelo, who was gracious
enough to let the Open Door Policy crew come
in and poke around inside those walls where such an
illustrious career had been forged.
This month we take a step back into Mr. Colangelo’s
old home base, where a real rags-to-riches story came
to life
1. The house Colangelo grew up in, outside
Chicago. “My grandfather built that house in
Chicago Heights out of the remnants of two railroad
box cars and some extra lumber. He was an
immigrant from the Old Country.”
“That’s my roots corner. One of the things I’ve
always truly believed in is roots. It’s important to be
grounded. Despite what you see here in terms of
the office, the skyline, etcetera, I’m always within
arms length of my roots. You can’t ever forget
where you came from.” 2. 1,000-year-old Amphora was found in the
Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Italy, was used
to store olive oil. “That’s about roots.” 3. Colangelo’s original stadium seat from Bank
One Ballpark. “When I stepped down from the
Diamondbacks, some of my people, unbeknownst
to me, took out my seat and replaced it. On the
anniversary of the day we won the World Series
they presented it to me because I never wanted
anyone to sit in my seat.” 4. Signifies the sale of the Suns to the new
ownership. Colangelo sold majority ownership for
$401 million in 2004.
5. Model of Citation X, private jet Colangelo uses
to get around the country. A new Citation X cost
about $19 million. 6. University of Illinois Foundation award.
Colangelo played basketball and gradated from the
university. 7. “New shoes that I haven’t taken home yet.”
Nike sent him a few new pairs each year. 8. Correspondence/updates from Suns, NBA
business, USA Basketball business, real estate
business, philanthropic business. 9. Antique Rudyard Kipling books 10. Antique partner’s desk, two lawyers would sit
on opposing sides of the desk. 11. Colangelo says those horns, dated from the
19th century, are “almost as old as me.” 12. Telescope was given to Colangelo so he
could keep an eye on the explosive growth of
downtown Phoenix. 13. View of downtown Phoenix 14. Flat screen TV 15. Authentic railing off an old-world wooden ship 16. John Wooden Keys to Life award. “That one
is very dear to me because of what he represents
as a person and coach. That’s a very special gift.” 17. Sculpted statue of Michael Jordon. The larger
version sits in front of the Bulls stadium in Chicago. 18. ESPY Award, “That was a significant deal.”
Given for Diamondbacks vs. Yankees Game. 19. Hall of Fame Award 20. Basketball signed by fellow Hall of Famer,
Clyde Drexler. 21. Numerous other Sporting News Executive of
the Year and other awards. “A lot of the awards I
just put away.”
