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Utah Jazz fire longtime employee who played team’s Jazz Bear mascot
A new man will be donning the furry costume and entertaining Jazz fans at Utah’s NBA home opener Friday night.
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In one of his early appearances, Jon Absey as Jazz Bear leaps through a flaming hoop during a November 1995 game against the Chicago Bulls in Salt Lake City.(Photo: Douglas C. Pizac, AP)
A new man will be donning the furry costume and entertaining Jazz fans at Utah’s NBA home opener Friday night.
Jon Absey has played Jazz Bear since the mascot’s inception in 1994, but he was fired this week and is no longer with the organization, according to Utah media reports, which cited a rift with Jazz staff.
“Jazz Bear will continue to be one of the most iconic mascots in the NBA,” said Jazz spokesman Frank Zang. “Out of respect for his character, which is separate from any employee ever badociated with it, we have never discussed his identity. We do not discuss individual personnel matters.”
Absey had suited up as the Jazz Bear in more than 800 home games and won the 2017-18 NBA Mascot of the Year award this summer, his third time winning the award.
But there will be a new face inside the bear as the team hosts the defending NBA champion Golden State Warriors.
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