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SALT LAKE CITY — Danny Ainge is in the process of determining just how wide to cast the net as he searches for the next head coach of the Utah Jazz.
The Jazz have made it clear they are in no rush to hire Quin Snyder's replacement; it doesn't matter if the new coach is in place this month, next month or even further. They just want to make sure they get it right.
Ainge and the front office can handle the draft and free agency without a coach; and many Utah assistants are still under contract, so they can take care of summer league. It's simply not necessary to speed through the process.
Ainge made two successful hires (Doc Rivers and Brad Stevens) during his time as Boston's general manager, but he said this search is different. He said both Rivers and Stevens were the names at top of his list then. Right now, he doesn't really have that same sure-fire option in his head.
"We've contacted some people as to who we want to interview for sure," he told Jazz radio announcer David Locke during a sit-down interview. "And we're still thinking about others. We're trying to figure out what net to cast."
Ainge admitted there might be some hesitancy when it comes to coaches wanting to take a look at the Jazz. The franchise is in a decent spot — six straight trips to the postseason and multiple All-Stars on the roster — but there's also plenty of mystery involved.
If Snyder was the first domino, which other ones will soon be falling? Still, it's one of just 30 NBA head coaching gigs — of course there's going be interested parties.
"I think there's a little bit of uncertainty and what direction the franchise is gonna go right now," Ainge told Locke. "And so there might be some hesitancy but, I mean, based on the first 24 hours after Quin stepped down, there's a lot of interest. There are many, many coaches out there that would die to have this job."
So far Ainge's net has included former NBA head coaches, top NBA assistants and those currently on the Jazz staff.
What exactly is the Utah CEO looking for? Obviously someone with a high basketball acumen; but he made it clear that to be a successful NBA coach, they have to have more than just the Xs and Os.
"You also have to be able to manage chaos," he said. "Everybody wants a beautifully run machine, but my NBA experience tells me that most of the great players and most of the great teams I've been around are mostly chaos. And so managing an entire organization and all that it entails — from medical staff to training staffs to travel to which hotel; 17 players and their agents — you're managing a lot of chaos and sometimes you have to focus on some of the chaos as opposed to just the basketball.
"It would be nice if I could just concentrate on what offense we're going to run tonight for the game, but the job is much, much bigger than that."
With that being the case, Ainge said he plans to get feedback from the current Jazz roster as part of the search. Ainge remembers Red Auerbach coming to him during his playing days in Boston and asking for his thoughts on trades and personnel decisions. He appreciated that.
"If there's been a particular player that has an association with a specific coach, I absolutely would be mistaken if I'm not going to spend time with that player," he said. "And then there's times when you just want them to feel included and you want to make them aware of the process that you're going through. But I feel as a coach and executive with players that you have to sell them on what you're doing, whatever it is.
"If you're making a trade that they might not like, you have to be able to sell why you're doing it. That's just to get them in the right frame of mind so they can give that change an opportunity to succeed. But I believe players are partners in this thing, too. So yes, I think player involvement is important."
Here's the list of coaches who have been reported to be interviewing for the job:
This list will be updated as the search goes on.
Jerome Allen
Coaching experience: Allen is currently an assistant coach for the Detroit Pistons. He was an assistant for the Boston Celtics from 2015-21 and the head coach of the University of Pennsylvania from 2009-15.
Ainge should know Allen well due to their time together in Boston where he was highly praised by players like Marcus Smart and Jayson Tatum. His rise in NBA circles, though, comes after some controversy during his early coaching days at Penn. He was just 65–104 as the head coach at Penn; and in 2014, he pled guilty to taking $300,000 in bribes to help get a wealthy businessman's son into the school.
Jason Terry
Coaching experience: Terry is currently the head coach of the G League's Grand Rapids Gold. He's also been an assistant at the University of Arizona.
Terry played 19 seasons in the NBA, including one season in Boston when Ainge was the general manager, before turning to coaching. Terry said earlier this week on CBS Sports Radio that he was "fully ready" to lead an NBA team.
"I definitely am equipped to be the head coach of an NBA franchise, Division I college program at this particular time just because of my experience, my ability to connect with the players, and then my ability to motivate and mentor and teach at the highest level," he said. Terry also added that he thought the tandem of Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell is good enough to compete for a title.
Terry Stotts
Coaching experience: The 64-year-old Stotts coached the Portland Trail Blazers from 2012-21. He's also been the head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks and Atlanta Hawks.
Stotts is highly regarded around the league. In Portland, Stotts coached the Blazers to the Western Conference Finals once and helped the team build around Damian Lillard. While the Blazers lost in the first round in four of his final five seasons with the team, it's widely considered that had more to do with the makeup of the roster than the coach. Stotts is well liked in Utah and spent time last season around the Jazz.
Frank Vogel
Coaching experience: Vogel has been the coach of the Indiana Pacers, Orlando Magic and most recently the Los Angeles Lakers.
Vogel led the Lakers to the 2020 NBA championship and is the Pacers' all-time winning coach. He's seen as a defense-first coach and likely will be the candidate with the most experience. Still, his final season with the Lakers ended in dysfunction.
Alex Jensen
Coaching experience: Jensen has been a Jazz assistant since 2013. He was the G League coach of the year in 2013 before joining Utah's staff.
Jensen, a native of Bountiful who starred at the University of Utah, has been a candidate for multiple jobs throughout the league during his tenure in Utah. He's a well-respected assistant coach, who has been critical in Rudy Gobert's development into the game's top defensive big man.
Johnnie Bryant
Coaching experience: Bryant is currently the associate head coach of the New York Knicks. He started his NBA career as a player development coach for the Jazz before being promoted to an assistant.
Ainge said he believed in player involvement when it comes to coaching searches, and Bryant should have backing from the Jazz's biggest voices. Bryant was the assistant that worked closest with Donovan Mitchell during his first years in the league, helping Mitchell go from late-lottery selection to a perennial All-Star.
Lamar Skeeter
Coaching experience: Skeeter has been on the Jazz staff since 2014.
Skeeter began his time with the Jazz in a player development and video role before he was promoted to assistant by Snyder. He's well liked in the organization and served as the team's summer league head coach in 2019. At just 33, Skeeter would be among the youngest coaches the modern NBA has seen.
Kevin Young
Coaching experience: Young is the current associate head coach for the Phoenix Suns, and a former assistant for the Philadelphia 76ers. He was a head coach for the Utah Flash.
Young is a rising assistant and was a finalist for the Washington Wizards job last offseason before he was promoted to the Suns top assistant, and he's got local ties. Young was born in Salt Lake City and was married in the Salt Lake Temple.
Charles Lee
Coaching experience: Lee is the current assistant coach for the Milwaukee Bucks. He also spent time with the Atlanta Hawks, also under coach Mike Budenholzer.
Lee is an up-and-coming assistant in the NBA. He was also interviewed by the Los Angeles Lakers during their coaching search. The Lakers, ultimately, landed on another Bucks assistant: Darvin Ham. Lee was also a candidate for the Washington Wizards and New Orleans Pelicans head coaching jobs last offseason.
Adrian Griffin
Coaching experience: Griffin is a current assistant for the Toronto Raptors. He's been an NBA assistant since 2008 with stops in Milwaukee, Chicago, Orlando and Oklahoma City.
Griffin has been a head coaching candidate for a while now. He was interviewed and was a finalist for the Jazz job in 2014 when Snyder was hired. He's been in Toronto since 2018, helping the Raptors win a title. In 2020, Griffin's ex-wife accused him of domestic violence. Griffin has since sued her for defamation. The case is still ongoing.
Will Hardy
Coaching experience: Hardy is a current Boston Celtics assistant coach. He's a former San Antonio Spurs assistant coach and video coordinator.
Hardy spent eight years with San Antonio learning under Greg Popovich before he was pulled away to Boston before last season. He's the top assistant in Boston and has helped the Celtics to an NBA Finals appearance.
Joe Mazzulla
Coaching experience: Mazulla is a current assistant for the Boston Celtics. He was the head coach at Fairmont State (Division II) before joining Boston' staff.
Mazzulla's name is interesting for this reason: He was on the Celtic's staff during Ainge's final two seasons as Boston's general manager. He must have left a pretty decent impression.
Chris Quinn
Coaching experience: Quinn has been a Miami Heat assistant since 2014.
Quinn has spent eight years learning under Eric Spoelstra in Miami, and has received high praise for his work there.
"When you listen to Quinny, you're hearing Spo. It's the same message." long time Miami forward Udonis Haslem said, "He has the knowledge, the experience, the relationship with the players. He has every base covered when you talk about checking the boxes to have the ability to be a successful head coach."
Sean Sweeney
Coaching experience: Sweeney is an assistant for the Dallas Mavericks. He's also spent time with the Detroit Pistons, Milwaukee Bucks and Brooklyn Nets.
Sweeney is seen as a defensive guru. He helped the Mavericks go from a bottom 10 defense to a top 10 defense last season, despite not having a true defensive big. That helped Dallas advance to the Western Conference Finals after beating the Jazz and the Suns in the playoffs. Sweeney also interviewed for the Charlotte Hornets' vacant job this offseason.
