Jerry Krause, former Bulls GM, dies at age 77

TORONTO – Jerry Krause, who was the architect of six NBA Championships and turned the Bulls into a world-wide brand, died on Tuesday after battling numerous health issues.

He was 77 years old.

A member of the Bulls front office for 18 years, Krause was responsible for surrounding Hall of Famer Michael Jordan with the likes of Scottie Pippen, Horace Grant, Toni Kukoc and Dennis Rodman, as well as the hiring of coach Phil Jackson.

[READ RICK TELANDER’S TRIBUTE TO JERRY KRAUSE]

“The entire Bulls organization is deeply saddened by the passing of Jerry Krause,’’ chairman Jerry Reinsdorf said in a statement. “Jerry was one of the hardest working guys I have ever been around, and he was one of the best talent evaluators ever. Jerry played an integral role in our run of six championships in eight years. He truly was the architect of all our great teams in the ’90s. I would not have been elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame if it were not for Jerry. We will miss him tremendously, and we send our thoughts and prayers to his wife Thelma and the Krause family.’’

GalleryWhat made the Krause story even more special was he was a Chicago native, taking over the basketball operations for the Bulls on Mar. 26, 1985.

Before he had that position with the Bulls, he was a scout with the Baltimore Bullets, Phoenix Suns, Los Angeles Lakers and, previously, the Bulls (1969-71), drafting future Hall of Famers Earl Monroe and Wes Unseld.

“I owe a lot to Jerry,’’ VP of basketball operations John Paxson said. “If it weren’t for him bringing me to Chicago in 1985, I probably never would have been a Bull. He had a great eye for talent, and his ability to build a team is unrivaled. He’s one of the best the league has ever seen.’’

It wasn’t just his influence on the Bulls, however, that solidified his place as one of the best talent evaluators in all of sports.

Krause got his start in baseball, and was responsible for the White Sox acquiring the likes of Ozzie Guillen.

That’s what Guillen loved about Krause. He not only was a risk-taker, but stood behind his decisions, despite criticism.

It was Krause that pushed the trade that sent Cy Young pitcher LaMarr Hoyt to San Diego in an eight-player deal that landed Guillen.

“Right now a lot of people are like, ‘Oh my God, I feel bad for him, Oh my God, rest in peace,’ but I don’t believe in those people,’’ Guillen said in a phone interview. “A lot of those people weren’t nice to Jerry, and that wasn’t fair. I am who I am because Jerry Krause took the risk, he gambled and I tried my best to make him look good.

“When you’re going to trade LaMarr Hoyt for Ozzie Guillen, and Tony La Russa is the manager you have to answer to, wow, you’re really putting yourself in jeopardy to lose your job. Trade for this kid that was 20 years old who is a little [bleep], that’s amazing. That’s trust in your ability to know talent.’’

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That criticism Guillen brought up became synonymous with Krause, as the Bulls dynasty started to crumble. Jordan and Jackson headlined a long line of critics that took shots at Krause not only professionally, but personally, from the way he spoke to the way he looked.

“It wasn’t fair,’’ Guillen said. “Nobody gave him the credit he should get. To put yourself in two really, really different sports, and have success in both, that’s not easy. When you do that you are successful in life. Watching Jerry in the stands was amazing because he loved baseball. He was the type that would go down to Latin America and spend three, four days just watching Winter Ball. Not too many people did that back then.’’

VP of baseball operations for the White Sox, Ken Williams, shared a similar opinion.

“We talk about his six championships so deservedly you would think he’d have lived long enough to see himself inducted into the Hall of Fame,’’ Williams said, pointing out that Krause was still unfairly not part of the Hall. “Hopefully that happens, but it would have been nice for him to see that happen. But he had a hand in seven championships being that he scouted both Ozzie and myself, and counseled us in the early years of some of the things we had to go through in our general manager, player relationships.

“He’s probably telling his friends up there right now he actually has seven.’’

The Toronto Raptors had a moment of silence before the Tuesday night game with the Bulls, and the Bulls players wore black tape on the left shoulder of their jersey to honor Krause.

According to the team, the plan was to honor Krause for the remainder of the season in some capacity

“Jerry Krause was a homegrown legend who built a dynasty recognized around the world,’’ Mayor Rahm Emanuel said in a statement. “He will forever be remembered as the architect of one of the most dynamic eras in Chicago sports history, who made the Bulls synonymous with Chicago and brought basketball to the world stage.’’

Krause is survived by his wife, Thelma; his two children, Stacy and David; and, his grandchildren Colette, Josh, Mia and Riley.

Email: jcowley@suntimes.com

Twitter: @suntimes_hoops