There are local sports figures who come off as unapproachable, gruff, unfriendly or distant. Those can all be true, or they can be imagined, or a bit of both. Following in the ‘I really don’t give a…’ spirit my father showed me at a young age, I really don’t care if a persona is real, imagined or an act. I don’t. An extended hand and a firm grip breaks through, even if the hand you are shaking is breaking yours in the process.
I don’t know exactly when I met Jim Flannery but I know it was on a golf course and one of the earliest photos I have of him in my files is from the spring of 2010. I know he won a state championship in his first year in 1981 and I was there for his last season in 2020. I missed his legendary basketball coaching career (1977-1993) at Salpointe but his stories made me feel like I was there.
The man who came off as a tough walnut, too hard to crack, told me about the time his wife Eleanor had to address his team at halftime during a playoff basketball game on his behalf and she, and his players, never told him what was said. OK, so maybe he was a bit too hard at times, heck he admitted it many times over. But we bonded.
Jim appreciated me as an often solitary figure on a golf course with a camera and a notepad – even during championship play. I know, because he told me so. Jim was straightforward and never pulled punches. His words were his thoughts. No filter. There were times when he told me about how he felt about others in may profession and those words will remain in the past but If you knew him, you knew.
He spoke fondly about my brother Javier and he did so often. Whatever praise or awards our family earns, we earn it together and as a forever “older brother,” I would always walk away with pride.
I last saw Jim at the private and public services held for Kelly Pierce not too long ago at Salpointe. I thought I saw him at the Salpointe football game Friday night but now I feel it must have been a dream of a memory because he was always on the sidelines or the stands watching Salpointe kids play, no matter what sport or season. Always.
My heart goes out to his family and to the Salpointe extended family. There are no words on services yet.
Jim coached freshman baseball, freshman football, girls basketball, JV basketball, varsity basketball and golf at Salpointe.
JIM FLANNERY FILE
1981: Golf Championship
1984: Basketball Region Championship
1991: Basketball Region Championship
1992: Basketball Region Championship
1992: Golf Third Place
1993: Golf Third Place
2004: Golf Championship
2005: Golf Runner-up
2006: Golf Runner-up
2008: Golf Runner-up
2009: Golf Third Place
2011: Golf Runner-up
2015: Golf Runner-up
2016: Golf Runner-up
(Salpointe Photo: 1965)
(Salpointe Photo: 1986)
(Salpointe Photo:1987)
Jim Flannery going for a rebound under the basket in dark uniform. (Citizen Photo: 1965)
I will really miss the opportunity to talk with Jim Flannery before various Salpointe sporting events. I always looked forward to see him much like I did with the late Don Bacon at Sahuaro games. Coach Flannery was like the venerable Vern Friedli to me – rough exterior but an… pic.twitter.com/ZY47FGqozT
— Javier Morales (@JavierJMorales) August 31, 2025
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