Jack McCloskey
Jack McCloskey, aka "Trader Jack," who served as the general manager of the Detroit Pistons from 1979-92, died Thursday at his home in Savannah, Ga., The Detroit News reports. He was 91.
McCloskey, who oversaw the celebrated Bad Boys era, had Alzheimer’s disease.
“The Detroit Pistons organization sends its thoughts and prayers to Jack’s wife, Leslie, and the entire McCloskey family,” the Pistons said in a statement posted on the team’s web site.
McCloskey drafted Isiah Thomas and Joe Dumars and traded for such Piston standouts as Vinnie Johnson, Bill Laimbeer, Rick Mahorn and Mark Aguirre., among others.
Keith Langlois, website editor for the Pistons, writes:
It’s no accident that the resonant quality common to all three Pistons NBA championship teams was toughness. The architect of the Bad Boys, Jack McCloskey, was as tough as shoe leather. He fought in the Pacific as a Navy sailor during World War II and was playing competitive basketball in national competitions into his 60s.
He had an iron grip and a steely gaze and didn’t easily tolerate fools. There was little chance for a breakdown in communication with Jack McCloskey. These times would try Trader Jack’s patience. In an age where people seem to assume the right to choose the set of facts that suits their agenda, the world is a poorer place for the loss of a man who dealt only in unvarnished truths.
McCloskey, who brought order to the Pistons when they were an NBA laughingstock and built them into back-to-back champions at the height of Lakers and Celtics dynasties, died Thursday after suffering from Alzheimer’s disease in recent years. McCloskey, 91, had years ago retired to Georgia with his wife, Leslie.
