The Utah Jazz were dealt a surprising blow when former head coach Quin Snyder stepped down after eight seasons at the helm. However, the organization has settled on Snyder's successor. Shams Charania of The Athletic reports that Alternate Governor and CEO Danny Ainge and the Jazz have hired former Boston Celtics assistant Will Hardy to be their next head coach.

Ainge has successfully hand-picked the successor to Snyder from the Celtics' coaching staff. ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reports that Hardy and the Jazz are finalizing a five-year contract to become Utah's next head coach.

The 34-year-old former Celtics assistant will now be the youngest active head coach in the NBA. A former intern in the San Antonio Spurs' video room, Hardy earned a promotion to Gregg Popovich's coaching staff back in 2015.

From there, the new Jazz head coach joined Ime Udoka's Celtics staff before the 2021-22 campaign. Hardy and the Jazz were thought to be a good match ahead of the offseason, as Utah was reportedly looking for an up-and-coming, first-time head coach, while Hardy was expected to attract the interest of teams in the head coaching market.

The former Celtics assistant previously interviewed with the New York Knicks, Indiana Pacers and Oklahoma City Thunder for their recent head coach openings.

RECOMMENDED (Article Continues Below)
Miami Heat stars Tyler Herro, Bam Adebayo, and head coach Erik Spoelstra in front of TD Garden.

Zachary Weinberger ·

Jaylen Brown, Celtics, Heat, Game 2, Game 3

Jackson Stone ·

Heat Celtics prediction

Chris Spiering ·

Now, Hardy will finally get his chance with a Jazz franchise that could be undergoing significant change this offseason. Set to help oversee this offseason is former NBA head and assistant coach David Fizdale, who will be joining the Jazz front office as an assistant general manager, per Wojnarowski.

With rumors swirling around stars Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert, Hardy could be inheriting a playoff-caliber Jazz team or one viewed more as an outside contender. There's also the chance of going into a rebuild in the near future.

Either way, the Jazz are clearly high on Hardy to have offered him a five-year deal.