Celtics Assistant Will Hardy Emerges as Leading Candidate for Utah Jazz Head Coaching Job

Boston Celtics assistant coach Will Hardy has reportedly emerged as a leading candidate to become the next head coach of the Utah Jazz, with former Celtics executive Danny Ainge helping steer the search.

The Salt Lake Tribune's Andy Larsen reported Saturday that Hardy is among the front-runners for the opening. According to Larsen, the Jazz and Ainge, who joined Utah earlier in 2022 as Alternate Governor and CEO, want to hire a younger assistant coach to take over from Quin Snyder.

At 34, Hardy fits that profile. He played college basketball at Williams College before joining the San Antonio Spurs organization in 2010, when Ime Udoka, now the Celtics' head coach, was still a player there. Both men later moved onto Gregg Popovich's coaching staff and worked on the same bench through 2019.

Udoka left the Spurs in 2019 to become an assistant with the 76ers. When he was named Celtics head coach in 2021, he chose Hardy as one of his lead assistants.

Hardy is reportedly one of at least 15 candidates to have interviewed for the Utah job. Another Celtics assistant, Joe Mazzulla, has also interviewed. Larsen additionally reported that Phoenix Suns assistant Kevin Young is a highly considered candidate.

Although both Hardy and Ainge have worked for the Celtics, their time in Boston did not overlap. Ainge resigned as president of basketball operations in June 2021, a move that set in motion the hiring of Udoka as head coach, since Brad Stevens took over Ainge's role.

The reported approach in Utah differs from the two occasions on which Ainge hired a head coach in Boston. In 2004, he brought in Doc Rivers, a former player with several years of head coaching experience. In 2013, he hired Stevens, who had enjoyed several successful seasons at Butler but had never coached in the NBA.

Udoka told reporters Friday that if Hardy or Mazzulla departs for Utah, he would promote from within the Celtics' staff to fill the vacancy.