Will Hardy on his contract extension with Holly Rowe 🎤 | UTAH JAZZ

Will Hardy on his contract extension with Holly Rowe 🎤 | UTAH JAZZ

Well, Coach Will Hardy, we have some big news to announce to Utah Jazz fans. You are signing a multi-year extension to continue as the head coach for the Utah Jazz. How excited are you about that and and why the commitment to Utah? Humbled, honored. You know, this is an incredible franchise. Um, the partnership with Ryan, Ashley, Danny, Justin, the way that they have believed in me since I got here, the way that I’ve been treated and accepted by our fan base, you don’t really understand the weight of being the head coach in a place like Utah until you get here. And the love and support that I have felt every day that I’ve been here from our fan base is incredible. Um, you know, we always try to show love back to our fans and to to have this this contract and to be be able to, you know, be committed to the next phase of our process is something that um is hard to explain. You know, moments like this are very surreal. I’m so excited. Uh, I know our staff’s excited. So, we’ve got a lot of work to do. We’re ready to go. Okay. I’m not going to lie. there, you know, jobs open up around the league and people are looking for coaching candidates. What was the conversation like for them to be like, “Hey, we really are committing to you and continuing to believe in you.” Yeah, those things are not things that I think about. Um, I feel fortunate to have gotten this opportunity and from the very first day, I’ve been allin on the Utah Jazz and they’ve been all in on me. So, the conversations have never been hard. They’re always very straightforward. It’s always been about Utah and from the from the first moment that I got here and it’ll it’ll always remain that way. Um that’s just how we want to operate as an organization and as a staff, I I could not be more excited to to be here with the Jazz. So, this is an opportunity that I don’t take lightly. Um so so excited to continue to represent this place. I remember when we first talked when you were in Boston when you had just gotten the job for the first time and you’re recounting your days as an intern, you know, for the Utah Jazz and the Delta Center. Now you’re back as the head coach, but that you continue to grow and set your tone and your culture like your journey is incredible. How proud are you of like how far you’ve come and the culture that you’re building? Yeah, you don’t think about it often. You know, you asking that question, it takes me a second because you you don’t take moments to pause and think about those things much. Um, I feel really fortunate. You know, I’m I’m proud of the the hard work that I’ve put in over the years and the way that I’ve conducted myself, but I’m not naive to the fact that there’s been a lot of good fortune along the way. I’ve had a lot of people invest in me, a lot of people give me their time and their energy, and a lot of people bet on me. Um, you know, from my first days in the NBA, it’s not lost on me how hard these jobs are to get. It’s not lost on me how hard it is to have longevity in this business and how you have to have some good fortune along the way. And I try to remain grateful for those things. And I feel the same way about my time here in Utah. Um, I was extremely grateful to get this opportunity and I’m still grateful to be the head coach of the Jazz. Um, I know that I can control my work ethic. I know that I can control how I treat all of our people within the organization, how I treat our fan base, our players. Um, so I’m I’m proud of of those things. But moments like this when you sit back and you think about 15 years in the NBA and starting as an intern, you know, I’m not a former player. Um, I do recognize the good fortune that has come my way and I really just try not to take it for granted. you you’ve got to give yourself some credit, too, because you have worked hard. And one of the things I’ve been impressed with watching you, you know, I get to be right there front and center and see you grow as a coach, but more importantly, the way that you interact with your players, they trust you. I I get to be right there and see these little side conversations that you’re having when guys are checking in the game and they come to the scorers table. How have you been able to establish such a great rapport and trust with your players so quickly? Because it’s there. I I get to see it and hear it every day. Yeah, I appreciate that. It’s it’s a daily thing. You know, any relationship is a is something that needs daily care and attention. Um, building trust is is very hard to do and it takes two sides of the relationship to have that. Um, you know, I I’ve always tried to approach our players with honesty. I’ve also tried to approach them with care and try to have some understanding of the things that they’re going through. Um, coaching in professional sports is not easy, but playing in professional sports is certainly not easy. And I think we’ve established a mutual connection around we’re all growing together. Um I don’t believe that I’m always right. I try to have some humility about the moments that I make mistakes with our team and I think that they’ve been receptive to that. Um we’re all trying to grow together in this moment in time. And I always want them to know that first and foremost I care about them as people. I care about their families. I want them to be happy and healthy. And then secondly, I want them to be the best basketball players they can be. And I think that we have um a connection based around all of us striving to be the best versions of ourselves in this business. They drive me crazy every day and I know that I’m a pain in their butt frequently. Um but underneath all that is a foundation of love and trust. So, it makes it very fun to come to work every day. They’re honestly an easy group of guys to coach because they are present in the moment. They do compete as hard as they can and they’re all trying to improve. Um, doesn’t mean we don’t have our moments where we’re frustrated with each other. That happens in in sports. Um, that happens really in any relationship. So, um, you know, our players are another element that I’m very, very grateful for because I came in at 34 years old as a first-time head coach and to their credit, they let me coach them and they’ve allowed me the opportunity to build trust with them and at this point, I feel like we do have a good foundation of trust and now it’s about getting better. Okay, for the fans, what’s next? This seems to be a big summer. What what’s the next couple of months look like for you and your staff in a very important building summer for the Utah Jazz? Yeah, our our young players are in the gym working out trying to to continue to improve. Our staff is doing the same. Um we’ve got to continue to refine and tweak our process as our team grows. No two teams are the same. Um, our outlook this year will not be the exact same thing as it was last year because there will be some new pieces. Obviously, we’ll find out more as we get through the draft and and through the rest of the summer in terms of what the roster looks like. But, um, you know, our staff is committed right now to continuing to try to help the players on our roster improve and then as a group continuing to refine the things that that we need to work on as a staff. Um, the off season is such a great time because you get to take a couple of weeks and decompress and recharge your batteries, but then there’s so much work that has to be done. U, we’re not waiting for anybody because we know the league won’t wait for us. So, um, it’s all about just putting in the work every single day, trying to address the players that we have on the roster now, and then as the team grows and changes, you know, we’ll be ready. It’s so exciting. I know the fans will be excited. I do believe you’re a fan favorite and you’ve done a good job where the fans have really embraced you. What do you say to the fans who have been there and really made this special? Yeah, first of all, thank you, Jazz Nation. You guys have believed in me, too. And I’ve felt the love from the very first moment that I got to Utah. Uh, I am a Uton now. And, uh, I’ve I’ve learned how to say it, too. You said it right. Right. That was pretty good. That was pretty good. Um, I love this place and it’s not just about the team. It’s not just about the organization. Um, the community here in the greater Salt Lake area and in Utah as a whole. Uh, has been very very receptive of me. I try to be very present in the community and I feel the love every day. Um, this is an amazing place to live. It’s an amazing place to work. And so to the fan base, it’s it’s thank you. And you know, I’ll continue to do everything in my power to to bring that that championship banner to Delta Center. That’s what we’re all hunting. And we all want the same thing. There’s going to be good moments. There’s going to be hard moments, but you know, we’re all in together. And I’m very, very thankful to to represent you.

Utah Jazz Head Coach sits down with Holly Rowe to talk about his contract extension and why Utah.

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