"Until Jordan came along, Sloan was Mr. Chicago Bull. Everyone knew that," longtime Bulls reporter Sam Smith wrote in 2009.
Tributes are pouring in from across the league, including Bulls great Scottie Pippen.
"I loved everything about Jerry Sloan, from the way he played to the way he coached," Pippen wrote. "He was a tenacious competitor who represented the Bulls of the 70s so well. Jerry became one of my favourite coaches when he was on the 1996 Dream Team staff and it was an honour to learn from him."
Spurs coach Gregg Popovoich, who recently passed Sloan in career wins to move into third sport all-time, told ESPN Sloan was "a mentor for me from afar until I got to know him. A man who suffered no fools, he possessed a humour, often disguised, and had a heart as big as the prairie".
Former Lakers, Knicks and Heat coach Pat Riley said: "It was a privilege to play against a Jerry Sloan coached team, I always knew that we would be severely tested. His overall philosophy on both sides of the ball was fundamentally solid and always one step ahead of the game."