The Utah Jazz appointed Austin Ainge as president of basketball operations Tuesday, establishing clear organizational hierarchy after years of ambiguous front office structure. Owner Ryan Smith confirmed Ainge will have final decision-making authority on personnel moves.
Smith addressed speculation about nepotism, noting he had pursued the younger Ainge independently before informing CEO Danny Ainge, Austin’s father, of the hire. The move came together rapidly after Smith’s recent conversation with Austin Ainge about joining the franchise’s rebuild effort.
“Austin will be running the program. He’s got final recommendation to myself on any decisions that need to be made,” Smith said during Tuesday’s introductory press…