SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Jazz introduced Quin Snyder as its new head coach Saturday morning and immediately took steps to creating a new identity for the foreseeable future. And although improvement is needed on both ends of the court, it’s the defensive aspect of the game that Snyder intends to focus on most.

“We want to compete offensively and we want to compete defensively,” Snyder said at Saturday’s press conference. “I’d like to have a defensive identity. I think that’s an area where we can try to take a stand. It involves habits, it involves energy, effort, focus. But that’s something that we obviously want to do.

“It’s hard to be good at everything right away,” Snyder added. “That’s an area where your team can connect on the defensive end. You’ve got to have each other’s back, and to me, philosophically, it’s a good place to have as an emphasis to coach and to help players understand how to help each other.”

The defensive identity, Snyder said, comes by expecting good habits, accountability and attention to detail — the basketball fundamentals.

“If you have attention to detail, it can all be situations to make you better,” Snyder said. “And the last thing would be accountability: us holding each other accountable, both players and coaches. That’s kind of the clay you use to mold the team.”

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Jazz hire Quin Snyder as head coach

The Utah Jazz announced Friday the hiring of Atlanta assistant coach Quin Snyder as its new head coach.

Last season, the Jazz were ranked at the bottom of the league defensively, despite a preseason emphasis on a roster expected to play a decent amount of defense. That process of turning a team around and competing defensively is a challenge Snyder said he looks forward to, but said “it’s hard to be good at everything right at away.”

Along with a newfound defensive identity, Snyder intends to play an up- tempo, unselfish style of play.

“If you’re a selfish team and you don’t play hard, not matter what you do with your players, it’s going to be difficult for you to have success,” Snyder said. “We’d like to play with some pace to give ourselves a chance to get some easy baskets.”

With a young core making up the Jazz roster, Snyder said his first order of business will be trying to earn the team’s trust.

“Trust is something that’s earned. Hopefully, what we walk in with is the seed of that trust,” he said. “It does take time. I think when you do what you say, it builds trust. With players, helping them get better, they always respond to you giving yourself to them. And they give back. That relationship itself is what I think drives players.

“I don’t think you can just lay it all out,” Snyder added about addressing the team for the first time. “To me, I hope that our team will know me by our actions and what we do.”

Snyder arrived in Salt Lake City early Saturday morning and has had little time to put together a coaching staff. Details of his staff are expected to be announced in the coming weeks.

Snyder did participate in his first pre-draft workout Saturday afternoon, observing Arizona’s Aaron Gordon, who is expected to be picked near the top of the lottery.

Contributing: Jeremiah Jensen

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