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June 8 update: The Jazz are continuing to expand the list of candidates for their vacant head coaching position, per Woj. This looks like its going to be a truly expansive search, so there isn’t going to be a resolution here in the near future.
Utah has requested permission to interview two more assistant coaches -- Toronto's Adrian Griffin and Phoenix's Kevin Young, sources tells ESPN. https://t.co/0mc1YWH7bl
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 8, 2022
The Utah Jazz have released an initial list of the candidates they’d like to interview for their head coaching position, per Adrian Wojnarowski. It’s a wide array of candidates, including current Jazz assistants Terry Stotts and Alex Jensen.
ESPN Sources: The Jazz received permission to interview several assistant coaches for head job, including Johnnie Bryant (Knicks), Will Hardy (Celtics), Charles Lee (Bucks), and Joe Mazzulla (Celtics). Jazz assistant Alex Jensen and Terry Stotts will interview too.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 7, 2022
Stotts has previous NBA head coaching experience, which is something which could separate him from the rest of the pool right now. He and Jensen has an additional advantage in that they both have a current connection with Jazz star Donovan Mitchell, who the team has said is “not in trade talks” for now. With Quin Snyder officially stepping away, Mitchell will have a say in the team’s next head coach.
There’s a theory about Bryant being in consideration for the job, per Andy Larsen of the Salt Lake Tribune. Bryant does have some significant coaching chops though, as he’s an associate head coach with the Knicks since 2020. Prior to that, he was an assistant with the Jazz from 2014-20.
To spell out the situation:
— Andy Larsen (@andyblarsen) June 5, 2022
CAA-represented Donovan had CAA-represented Woj release that he was "surprised and disappointed" about Quin's departure (something that's been rumored for months, exactly 0 people are surprised) so that CAA-represented Johnnie Bryant can get the job
There are two Celtics assistants in the mix, which is expected considering Danny Ainge’s current standing in Utah and his ties to Boston. Both Will Hardy and Joe Mazzulla will get significant consideration with this connection, although it might not be enough if Mitchell wants Bryant as his coach.