Jazz HC Will Hardy Emphasizes Rebuilding Vision in Media Day Presser

The Utah Jazz have a clear priority for this coming season.

Apr 9, 2024; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Utah Jazz head coach Will Hardy looks on against the Denver Nuggets during the fourth quarter at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images / Rob Gray-Imagn Images

The Utah Jazz are going into this season with a clear expectation hanging over their head. Prepared to take on the season with three rookies and three year-two players, this is a roster that looks to be among the youngest in the NBA, and one to embark on a season emphasizing growth and development rather than championship aspirations.

It's an expectation that Jazz HC Will Hardy is aware of and one that he seemingly isn't backing down from. The 36-year-old head coach is entering his third campaign in Utah, and while he may have a roster a bit younger and more inexperienced than in years past, there seems to be more excitement than worry in the process.

During Coach Hardy's media day presser, he touched a bit on what the Jazz's vision is set to be for the coming season starting next month, putting a big emphasis on their youth movement:

"Going into this season, I think our vision is very clear: This is an opportunity for us to really invest in our youth... We have 7 guys 23 and under. We are really excited about all
7 of those players, and we need to invest in all of them to try and help them grow and develop. At the same time, try to learn about who they are now, and where we see each of them going in the future."

- Will Hardy on Jazz's expectations

The Jazz have forged together an appealing young core across the past three offseasons, most recently bringing in a lottery selection in Cody Williams and two late-round steals in Isaiah Collier and Kyle Filipowski. Per Hardy's comments, we should expect to see them, alongside their second-year players and Walker Kessler be at the forefront of the priority list for the 2024-25 campaign.

For the past two seasons, the Jazz have seemingly tried to provide a more even balance between their youth and veteran talent, which ultimately led to them finding their way to a middle-of-the-lottery finish for the past two summers. This season projects to be different, and if so, that young talent should get a much larger opportunity than we've seen throughout Utah's rebuilding process.

The action will start ramping up for the Jazz quickly, as training camp officially begins on October 1st, while preseason tips off on the 5th against the New Zealand Breakers.

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