He’s Our Man: Utah Jazz extend head coach Will Hardy through 2031

Calvin Barrett is a writer, editor, and prolific Mario Kart racer located in Provo, Utah. Currently writing for SB Nation and FanSided, he has covered the Utah Jazz and BYU athletics since 2024 and …

Calvin Barrett is a writer, editor, and prolific Mario Kart racer located in Provo, Utah. Currently writing for SB Nation and FanSided, he has covered the Utah Jazz and BYU athletics since 2024 and graduated (woohoo!) from Utah Valley University.

Have no doubt: Will Hardy is here to stay with the Utah Jazz for the long haul, and that was made clear as owner Ryan Smith announced the coach’s contract extension to remain in the Salt Lake Valley through the turn of the next decade.

Hardy is an often overlooked aspect of the seismic shift in the landscape of the Utah Jazz organization back in 2022. In the wake of the Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell exchanges, Utah likewise overhauled its coaching staff by drawing in a young coach who many considered the heir apparent of the heir apparent of the Celtics’ throne.

Though he has yet to reach the playoffs with his young Jazz team, it’s clear that Hardy’s regimen, combined with an affable personality, has stretched his young Jazz roster well beyond their expected win totals — almost to the detriment of a team hoping to build a championship contender through the draft.

Like a desperate desert wanderer, he’s been able to discover fresh water in some of the most unlikely of places. His will to survive — pardon my pun — has revealed some fascinating building blocks of a potential future championship squad.

Isaiah Collier? From a borderline NBA player to a playmaking manifesto, his rookie season was a major success. Kyle Filipowski? Unexpectedly, he became one of the best rookies in his entire draft class, despite slipping to the second round. You already know about the career revival of Lauri Markkanen, an international hooper who entered the NBA a touch flat before exploding with Hardy and the Jazz.

While his run in Utah is still very young, it’s clear that Hardy’s boys (I can’t help myself) have outperformed expectations time and time again. In a long and exhausting rebuilding process, it’s important to have the right individuals in place. Hardy has bought into the program, and his shared conviction has bled into every fiber of his stewardship.

Will Hardy is here to stay, and the future of the Utah Jazz just got that much brighter.