Jazz hire Celtics assistant Hardy as head coach

The Utah Jazz hired former Boston Celtics assistant Will Hardy as their ninth head coach in franchise history on Wednesday.

Utah and Hardy agreed to a five-year contract, sources told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.

In a statement, Jazz CEO of basketball operations Danny Ainge deemed Hardy "one of the brightest young leaders in the NBA."

"He understands the importance of setting a vision and creating a culture for players," Ainge added. "He places great value on communication, player development and creating the most productive environment for players to succeed.

"His experience on coaching staffs that have made the NBA Finals and with USA Basketball are invaluable and have helped prepare him for this moment. We couldn't be more excited for Will to lead the Jazz moving forward."

Hardy, 34, is now the youngest active head coach in the league.

The position was left vacant when Quin Snyder departed this spring following a successful eight-year run with the franchise.

Utah chose Hardy over a handful of finalists, including fellow Celtics assistant Joe Mazzulla, Raptors assistant Adrian Griffin, and Jazz assistant Alex Jensen.

Hardy got his start in the NBA as a video coordinator with the San Antonio Spurs before moving up to assistant under Gregg Popovich.

The Virginia native joined former Spurs coach Ime Udoka last season with the Boston Celtics, playing an integral role in the team's surge to the NBA Finals. Hardy will now work under former Celtics executive Danny Ainge in Utah.

In addition to hiring Hardy, Utah is also adding former Memphis Grizzlies and New York Knicks head coach David Fizdale as an associate general manager, sources told Wojnarowski.