Celtics assistant coach Will Hardy is reportedly finalizing a deal to become the head coach of the Utah Jazz. How will this impact the Celtics?
It didn't take long for one of Ime Udoka's assistants to land a head coaching job of their own.
Will Hardy, who joined the Boston Celtics' coaching staff last summer, is finalizing a deal to become the next head coach of the Utah Jazz, per The Athletic's Shams Charania.
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Charania adds that C's president-turned-Jazz CEO Danny Ainge underwent an "extensive" coaching search that included former head coaches, top assistants, G League coaches and former players, and Hardy stood out above the rest. ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reports that Celtics assistant Joe Mazzulla was among the finalists for the job.
Wojnarowski reports it will be a five-year contract for Hardy, who will become the youngest active NBA head coach at 34 years old.
Despite his age, he has plenty of experience as he learned under legendary head coach Gregg Popovich for several years on the San Antonio Spurs. The Williams College product was the Spurs' video coordinator from 2013-15 and spent four seasons as an assistant on Popovich's staff. He served on Team USA's coaching staff alongside Udoka at the 2019 FIBA World Cup.
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Hardy will replace Quin Snyder, who went 372-264 during his tenure as Jazz head coach and made six consecutive postseason appearances.