The head coaching search for the Utah Jazz ended on Friday when they came to terms with Atlanta Hawks assistant coach Quin Snyder. Snyder beat out a few other candidates for the position which included Clippers assistant Alvin Gentry and Bulls assistant Adrian Griffin.
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On Saturday, the team officially announced Snyder as the next head coach of the team, and right off the bat, Snyder mentioned that loyalty is the key to all of this succeeding in the end.
“For a coach to have the loyalty of the ownership group, you feel you don’t need to skip steps,” Snyder said during the press conference. “It’s a process and sometimes there is pressure to accelerate that process but we want to build something that will last.”
Next, he expressed that trust will also be a major factor, something that was questioned with him when he was forced to leave Missouri amid an NCAA investigation a few years back.
“Trust is something that’s earned,” Snyder said. “It takes time but with players, they always respond when you give yourself to them and help them get better. They then give back to you. Those relationships are what drive player development.”
The deal that Snyder signed with the team was for three years, with an option for a fourth, and that’s exactly how long it may take to make this team a contender in the league once again.
Last year the team finished an abysmal 25-57, warranting the team to not offer a new contract to then coach Tyrone Corbin following the season. They’re taking a chance on Snyder, who is making his NBA head coaching debut, but sometimes you have to make a gamble and see if it pays off in the end.
With the coaching pedigree that Snyder has, working with someone like Coach K as he did for many years, a successful run with the Jazz isn’t as improbable as some may think.