Back in 2022 when Will Hardy was making the decision on whether he would remain with the Boston Celtics as an assistant coach or take the job as the new head coach of the Utah Jazz, there were a lot of things to consider.
Obviously the opportunity to be a head coach in the NBA is one that is hard to pass on, but there was a lot of unknown in Utah. The Jazz were looking at what a tear down and rebuild might look like, they were under new ownership and in general, the future of the team was uncertain.
In Boston, Hardy wouldn’t be running the show, but the team had just been to the NBA Finals. The Celtics were a team on the rise, one that looked destined to win a title, which they did in 2024.
But there were a number of ways the Jazz appealed to Hardy, despite some of the unknowns, and one of the reasons was Danny Ainge.
“I didn’t know Danny before,” Hardy said, “but his reputation speaks for itself. His level of success and the work that he’s done speaks for itself.
“It gave me a lot of comfort that he’s seen the league from 360 degrees — player, coach, GM, media — and so there’s not a lot that surprises D.A.”
Utah Jazz center Walker Kessler (24) guards Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (0) while he drives the ball down the court during an NBA game between the Utah Jazz and the Boston Celtics at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, March 21, 2025.| Brice Tucker, Deseret News
Utah Jazz guard Collin Sexton (2) drives the ball to the basket during an NBA game between the Utah Jazz and the Boston Celtics at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, March 21, 2025.| Brice Tucker, Deseret News
Utah Jazz guard Isaiah Collier (13) puts up a shot while driving to the basket during an NBA game between the Utah Jazz and the Boston Celtics at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, March 21, 2025.| Brice Tucker, Deseret News
Utah Jazz center Walker Kessler (24) reaches for a rebound during an NBA game between the Utah Jazz and the Boston Celtics at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, March 21, 2025.| Brice Tucker, Deseret News
Utah Jazz center Walker Kessler (24) attempts to put up a shot during an NBA game between the Utah Jazz and the Boston Celtics at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, March 21, 2025.| Brice Tucker, Deseret News
Utah Jazz center Micah Potter (25) puts up a 3-pointer during an NBA game between the Utah Jazz and the Boston Celtics at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, March 21, 2025.| Brice Tucker, Deseret News
Utah Jazz center Walker Kessler (24) and Boston Celtics center Luke Kornet (40) both reach for a rebound during an NBA game at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, March 21, 2025.| Brice Tucker, Deseret News
Utah Jazz center Walker Kessler (24) grabs a rebound during an NBA game between the Utah Jazz and the Boston Celtics at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, March 21, 2025.| Brice Tucker, Deseret News
Boston Celtics center Luke Kornet (40) drives the ball to the basket for a dunk during an NBA game between the Utah Jazz and the Boston Celtics at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, March 21, 2025.| Brice Tucker, Deseret News
Utah Jazz guard Svi Mykhailiuk (19) and Boston Celtics guard Jrue Holiday (4) talk on the court before an NBA game between the Utah Jazz and the Boston Celtics at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, March 21, 2025.| Brice Tucker, Deseret News
Utah Jazz guard Collin Sexton (2) drives the ball down the court during an NBA game between the Utah Jazz and the Boston Celtics at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, March 21, 2025.| Brice Tucker, Deseret News
Boston Celtics players celebrate from the bench after a 3-pointer shot by Boston Celtics guard Payton Pritchard (11) during an NBA game between the Utah Jazz and the Boston Celtics at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, March 21, 2025.| Brice Tucker, Deseret News
Utah Jazz guard Collin Sexton (2) puts up a shot during an NBA game between the Utah Jazz and the Boston Celtics at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, March 21, 2025.| Brice Tucker, Deseret News
Utah Jazz guard Collin Sexton (2) drives the ball to the basket during an NBA game between the Utah Jazz and the Boston Celtics at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, March 21, 2025.| Brice Tucker, Deseret News
Utah Jazz guard Collin Sexton (2) yells to his teammates during an NBA game between the Utah Jazz and the Boston Celtics at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, March 21, 2025.| Brice Tucker, Deseret News
Utah Jazz guard Johnny Juzang (33) puts up a shot during an NBA game between the Utah Jazz and the Boston Celtics at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, March 21, 2025.| Brice Tucker, Deseret News
Utah Jazz center Micah Potter (25) attempts to block a shot by Boston Celtics guard Payton Pritchard (11) during an NBA game at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, March 21, 2025.| Brice Tucker, Deseret News
Boston Celtics center Kristaps Porzingis (8) puts up a shot during an NBA game between the Utah Jazz and the Boston Celtics at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, March 21, 2025.| Brice Tucker, Deseret News
Boston Celtics center Kristaps Porzingis (8) passes the ball during an NBA game between the Utah Jazz and the Boston Celtics at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, March 21, 2025.| Brice Tucker, Deseret News
Utah Jazz CEO Danny Ainge and his wife, Michelle, both watch an NBA game between the Utah Jazz and the Boston Celtics at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, March 21, 2025.| Brice Tucker, Deseret News
Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla gestures to his players during an NBA game between the Utah Jazz and the Boston Celtics at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, March 21, 2025.| Brice Tucker, Deseret News
Boston Celtics forward Torrey Craig (12) celebrates after a basket by Boston during an NBA game between the Utah Jazz and the Boston Celtics at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, March 21, 2025.| Brice Tucker, Deseret News
Utah Jazz head coach Will Hardy disagrees with a referee call during an NBA game between the Utah Jazz and the Boston Celtics at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, March 21, 2025.| Brice Tucker, Deseret News
A Utah Jazz fan celebrates a 3-pointer during an NBA game between the Utah Jazz and the Boston Celtics at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, March 21, 2025.| Brice Tucker, Deseret News
Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla talks with his players during an NBA game between the Utah Jazz and the Boston Celtics at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, March 21, 2025.| Brice Tucker, Deseret News
There has to be a level of buy in from a new head coach. They have to believe in the vision of those that are making decisions on players and contracts and strategy, and Ainge has a wealth of knowledge to pull from when it comes to making basketball decisions.
Ainge was a player for 14 years and worked as an assistant coach and head coach before becoming the long time front office guru in Boston.
He was the person who created the Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen team that won the 2008 NBA title and was the person responsible for drafting a number of players on the Celtics roster who went on to win the 2022 title.
Many of the same players from that 2022 team whom Ainge drafted — Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Payton Pritchard — have helped the Celtics to a 50+ win record this season, including a 121-99 win over the Jazz on Friday night, and they look poised to once again compete for a title.
Ainge stepped away from his position with the Celtics in 2021 before eventually taking a job with the Jazz.
The situations that led up to Boston’s two recent titles and the current rebuild in Utah are massively different in a number of ways — market, assets, draft capital, coaching, conference, roster makeup, types of players available etc. — and there are certainly those who would disagree with the way the Jazz have approached the last couple of years.
But there are many who believe in how the Jazz are attempting to create a team that can be successful long term, and one of those people is Will Hardy, though it’s not just the presence of Ainge that has Hardy bought in.
“It’s the totality of Danny, (team owner) Ryan (Smith), (general manager) Justin (Zanik), like that gave me all the comfort in the world that I was going to go work with three people who were not only intelligent and successful, but are driven to try to make this place a championship level organization...and they also let me do my thing,” Hardy said.
“They let me coach. They’ve let me hire a staff. They’ve let me have a lot of discussions with them as it relates to draft, free agents, all those types of things. They keep me very included in all the conversations.”
Buy in, of course, does not guarantee success. There is no guarantee in professional sports, but when Hardy surveyed the landscape and saw that Ainge was going to be a part of executing the vision that all of the Jazz decision makers had, it made for an easy decision.
“It was daunting in that moment,” Hardy said of the interview and decision process of becoming the Jazz head coach. “Like, that’s where you’re forming those relationships and you’re interviewing, and it’s just uncomfortable in general, but Danny was, for sure, a big part of being comfortable.”