Austin Ainge is reuniting with his father.
The Utah Jazz are hiring Ainge, the Boston Celtics’ assistant general manager, as their new president of basketball operations, the team announced Monday. ESPN’s Shams Charania and Tim Bontemps first reported Ainge’s hire.
Ainge is the son of former Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge, who left Boston in June 2021 and took over as the Jazz’s CEO of basketball operations and alternate governor later that year.
Austin Ainge first joined the Celtics organization in 2009, serving as head coach of the G League Affiliate Maine Red Claws (now the Maine Celtics). He moved to the front office in 2011, starting out as Boston’s director of player personnel before assuming the assistant GM role in 2019.
“We are thrilled for Austin as he embarks on his new journey with the Jazz,” Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens said in a statement Monday. “He’s clearly ready for this next step, and I know how much he’s looking forward to leading a team.
“He’s obviously very bright and has experienced success as a player, coach and executive at various levels of the game. On top of that, he leaves no stone unturned – he’s a strategic thinker that’s motivated and is an extremely hard worker. We will miss him in Boston, but could not be happier for Austin and his family.“
The timing of Ainge’s departure is notable, as Boston faces a potentially franchise-altering offseason. The Celtics need to shed at least $20 million in salary to get under the second apron of the luxury tax, and Jayson Tatum’s ruptured Achilles — which could sideline him for most or all of the 2025-26 season — might convince Stevens to reset the roster in some capacity to avoid punitive roster-building and financial penalties.
Stevens and his front office now will need to make those decisions without Ainge, who gets the chance to serve in a prominent role for a franchise that features his father atop the masthead and a former Celtics assistant, Will Hardy, as head coach.
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