Will Hardy leaving Celtics for Jazz head coaching job

BOSTON -- Ime Udoka is losing his top assistant on the Boston bench. Will Hardy has agreed to leave the Celtics to become the head coach of the Utah Jazz.

It was first reported that Hardy was closing in on a deal with Utah by Shams Charania of The Athletic, with ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski later adding that the two sides were finalizing a five-year pact.

This will be the first head-coaching job for Hardy, a longtime assistant in the NBA. At 34, he'll be the youngest head coach in the league.

Hardy got his start with the San Antonio Spurs in the team's video room in 2010, and worked his way up to join Gregg Popovich's staff in 2015. He remained in San Antonio until 2021, when he joined Udoka in Boston.

He now takes over for Quin Snyder, who led the Jazz to six straight postseason appearances before resigning after last season. Hardy will work under for Celtics president of basketball ops. Danny Ainge, who is now an executive in Utah.

Udoka and company will now look to fill the void left by Hardy's departure.