This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Gordon Hayward is not quite an All-Star and he never has won an NBA playoff game. He's also the Most Influential Person in Utah Sports for 2016.
Hayward is the first athlete to earn that designation in the 12 years of The Salt Lake Tribune's rankings. What he has done to deserve it? His selection has as much to do with what's ahead for him and the Jazz as any of his accomplishments to date, although he has made a big impact in six years in Utah.
Hayward contributed significantly in the Jazz's improvement in the last two seasons, but the team has failed to make the playoffs. What's driving his value to the Jazz is his linchpin status in the franchise's future, amid his options to go elsewhere in 2017.
The Jazz have made moves this summer to improve right away, adding three key players in their 30s. The dots are not difficult to connect. Team officials know they have to impress Hayward, demonstrating the Jazz's ability to climb in the Western Conference standings and succeed in the playoffs. Otherwise, once he opts out of his contract next summer, he would be less likely to stay in Utah.
And if Hayward left, the Jazz's trajectory would be altered considerably. As the team's personnel keeps being upgraded, Hayward's role logically should decrease at some point. But that has not happened yet. He scored 19.7 points in 2015-16, raising his scoring average for the fifth straight season. Hayward averaged 36.2 minutes of 80 games as a durable player, amid injuries to Rudy Gobert, Derrick Favors and other teammates.
Hayward turned down an invitation to the join the U.S. Olympic team in Rio de Janeiro, citing his wife's pregnancy, after other players' withdrawals gave him that opportunity.
2. Kyle Whittingham
• Utah football coach
• Previous ranking: No. 4
With his second contract extension since the 2014 season ended, Whittingham is moving into the $3 million salary range and is more secure in his position. College football's evolution has made Power 5 membership even more important, and Whittingham's program is well positioned to succeed in the Pac-12. He also claims five straight wins over rival BYU, including a Las Vegas Bowl victory that concluded the Utes' first 10-win season since 2010.
3. Dennis Lindsey
• Utah Jazz general manager
• Previous ranking: No. 3
The bulk of his rebuilding project is finished, so Lindsey tried to accelerate the process this summer by acquiring three NBA veterans in their 30s. George Hill, Joe Johnson and Boris Diaw should fill needs at various positions and give the Jazz the depth and flexibility they lacked during an injury-filled season. Lindsey has built a basketball operation that models the San Antonio Spurs, with staffing and innovations designed for player development.
4. Quin Snyder
• Utah Jazz coach
• Previous ranking: No. 1
Snyder's team improved by two wins in 2015-16, going 40-42 after making a 13-win jump the previous season and establishing him as a rising star among NBA coaches. He succeeded in keeping the team together and contending for a playoff spot, although some stumbles down the stretch resulted in a missed opportunity. Snyder will have many more lineup options to finish games this year, and will have to manage a deep roster of players who expect to be on the court.
5. Larry Krystkowiak
• Utah basketball coach
• Previous ranking: No. 2
Krystkowiak has recruited and developed a first-round pick in each of the last two NBA drafts. His team finished second in the Pac-12 and reached the championship game of the conference tournament for the first time. The Utes earned a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament, although they lost badly to Gonzaga in the second round. Krystkowiak made history by canceling a 2016-17 game vs. BYU, but either relented or was overruled about future scheduling of the rivalry contest.
6. Gail Miller
• Utah Jazz owner
• Previous ranking: No. 5
Jazz officials often mention "the Miller family" as their overriding influence. Seven years after the death of her husband, Larry H. Miller, the family retains ownership of the franchise and Gail Miller is a courtside fixture at games and has authorized major upgrades to Vivint Smart Home Arena. Her sons no longer are involved in the day-to-day operation, although Greg Miller represents the Jazz on the NBA Board of Governors.
7. Dell Loy Hansen
• Real Salt Lake owner
• Previous ranking: No. 6
Since last year's rankings were published, president Bill Manning left RSL, completing a major transition under Hansen's ownership. The team remains a Major League Soccer success story with average attendance topping 19,500 at Rio Tinto Stadium. RSL missed the MLS playoffs in 2015 for the first time in eight seasons, however, and has hit a lull on the field after a strong start this year. Hansen is building a $50 million training complex in Herriman.
8. Kalani Sitake
• BYU football coach
• Previous ranking: NR
Hired following Bronco Mendenhall's move to Virginia after 11 years on the job, Sitake has re-energized BYU's fan base by hiring offensive coordinator Ty Detmer and rebuilding relationships with other former Cougar players. The timing of his arrival gives him a challenging schedule as a first-time head coach, but also may enable him to lead the program into the Big 12. The former Utah defensive coordinator inherits a five-game losing streak in the rivalry.
9. Jeff Robbins
• Utah Sports Commission CEO
• Previous ranking: No. 10
The Utah Sports Commission is a major player in the state, instrumental in attracting a wide variety of sporting events. This summer, the commission will have helped stage the National Veterans Wheelchair Games, the USA Women's Rugby Series, the Nitro World Games, the Web.com Tour's Utah Championship and the Tour of Utah, among other events. Such competitions generate millions of dollars in economic impact and provide vast spectator opportunities for Utahns.
10. Tom Holmoe
• BYU athletic director
• Previous ranking: No. 11
Holmoe's ranking is a compromise between the likelihood of BYU's inclusion in the Big 12 and the chance that the school will be overlooked. In either case, Holmoe is in a key position this summer, trying to take his football program — if not the entire athletic department — from independence into a Power 5 conference. In December, Holmoe faced his first major coaching search in 10 years, ultimately choosing Sitake to lead the football team.
11. Chris Hill
• Utah athletic director
• Previous ranking: No. 9
Hill's work in elevating Utah's athletic program to Power 5 status is complete, and the Utes firmly have established themselves in the Pac-12 in several sports. Utah even broke through in baseball in 2016, winning the department's first conference championship in men's athletics. Hill succeeded in keeping deputy AD Kyle Brennan after his top aide was introduced as Montana State's athletic director. A new video board will enhance Rice-Eccles Stadium in 2016.
12. Steve Starks
• Utah Jazz president
• Previous ranking: No. 23
Starks managed to broker the four-school agreement that created the Zions Bank Beehive Classic, a basketball doubleheader that had been discussed in some format for more than 30 years. Utah, BYU, Utah State and Weber State will come to Vivint Smart Home Arena in December 2017. By then, Starks will have overseen a $100 million-plus renovation of the building that opened in 1991. The Jazz successfully staged a three-day summer league again in July.
13. Craig Waibel
• Real Salt Lake general manager
• Previous ranking: NR
Formerly the team's technical director, Waibel received the general manager's title last August. Bringing back Yura Movsisyan is his primary achievement to date, as he built a roster that managed to overcome an early road-heavy schedule due to the renovation of the Rio Tinto Stadium field. The team remains in the middle of the MLS playoff picture, despite settling for ties lately and failing to take advantage of a home-oriented stretch.
14. Rudy Gobert
• Utah Jazz center
• Previous ranking: No. 12
The Jazz were looking like a playoff team as of early December, before Gobert sustained a knee injury in practice and missed about one-fourth of the season. His return boosted the Jazz, but they couldn't complete a playoff push in April. Gobert remains a cornerstone of a team built around defense, and he's happy to have French compatriot Boris Diaw join the team. They will play together in the Olympics, beginning Aug. 6 in Rio de Janeiro.
15. Tony Finau
• PGA Tour golfer
• Previous ranking: No. 21
In March, Finau became the first Utah native in 25 years to win a PGA Tour title, claiming the Puerto Rico Open in a playoff. He's No. 77 in the Official World Golf Ranking. The West High School alumnus contended in the British Open for three rounds and performed well in three of the first four majors of his career. Finau led a contingent of five homegrown Utahns into this week's PGA Championship — three tour members and two teaching pros who qualified.
16. Yura Movsisyan
• Real Salt Lake forward
• Previous ranking: NR
Loaned to RSL from Spartak Moscow in January, Movsisyan has returned to the team he once propelled to its first playoff berth in 2008 with a late goal to tie Colorado. He was named the MLS Player of the Month in June after scoring three goals to help Real go 2-1-1 in league play. Movsisyan leads the team with seven goals and is dependable for his all-out, consistent effort. He will be vital in the team's bid for a playoff spot in October.
17. Amy Hogue/Bill Kinneberg
• Utah softball/baseball coaches
• Previous ranking: No. 24
They're not quite co-coaches in the model of Utah's gymnastics team, but Hogue and Kinneberg have a kinship, competing in sports that the Pac-12's warm-weather schools have dominated. Hogue's softball team finished fourth in the conference and advanced to the NCAA Tournament's 16-team Super Regionals. Kinneberg's baseball team delivered the Utes' first Pac-12 title in men's sports and played in a regional final after upsetting host Mississippi in an opener.
18. Dave Rose
• BYU basketball coach
• Previous ranking: No. 19
Always having to juggle his roster of LDS missionaries, Rose now has an opportunity to operate a relatively stable program for three years with the convergence of former Lone Peak High School stars Nick Emery, Eric Mika and TJ Haws. BYU is one of 10 programs to have appeared in either the NCAA Tournament or the NIT every year since 2005, when Rose took over. The Cougars played in the NIT semifinals in 2016, when Kyle Collinsworth ended his record-setting career.
19. Megan Marsden/Tom Farden
• Utah gymnastics co-coaches
• Previous ranking: No. 16
In the first season of Utah gymnastics without program founder Greg Marsden, the Utes failed to win the Pac-12 title or reach the Super Six of the NCAA Championships. Yet they performed well at home, as usual, and led the country in attendance among all women's sports by averaging 14,928 fans. Utah will welcome freshman MyKayla Skinner, who finished fourth in the all-around competition in the U.S. Olympic Trials and was named the team's first alternate.
20. Matt Wells
• Utah State football coach
• Previous ranking: No. 17
The Aggies dipped to 6-7 in Wells' third season, but played in school-record fifth straight bowl game. His assistants were in demand by other schools, forcing Wells to make six new hires while he and the remaining three coaches handled most of USU's recruiting efforts in January. Wells is taking over the offensive play-calling in 2016, when the Aggies are picked third in their division of the Mountain West and have two preseason all-league selections on each line.
21. Shawn Olmstead
• BYU men's volleyball coach
• Previous ranking: NR
Men's volleyball is a phenomenon in Provo, with BYU leading the country in attendance for the third year in a row with a 3,460 average in 2016. The Cougars have a 25-match home winning streak, partly attributable to the fan support at Smith Fieldhouse. Olmstead has made a successful transition after coaching the Cougar women's team for four years and he led BYU to the NCAA championship match in May before losing to Ohio State.
22. Rob Cuff
• UHSAA executive director
• Previous ranking: No. 22
Based on the number of people directly affected, the Utah High School Activities Association is as important as any athletic organization in the state. The UHSAA has 150 member schools, with nearly 88,000 students participating in athletics and activities in the 2015-16 school year. The UHSAA's board makes the rulings, but Cuff is a strong presence for the association as a former basketball coach and classroom teacher, with a steady demeanor.
23. Andrea Williams
• Big Sky Conference commissioner
• Previous ranking: NR
Williams' ranking is partly a tribute to Doug Fullerton, who established the Big Sky office in Ogden and served the conference for 20 years before retiring. The Big Sky is the only Division I conference with two Utah schools. As an African-American woman, Williams is a significant hire for a Utah-based organization. Her arrival from the Big Ten followed the promotion of Southern Utah's Demario Warren, the first black head football coach of any college in the state.
24. Randy Rahe
• Weber State basketball coach
• Previous ranking: NR
Rahe's program has produced two NBA draft picks in the past five seasons, a distinction matched only by Utah's Larry Krystkowiak in the state. Damian Lillard is an All-Star in Portland and Joel Bolomboy will be in the Jazz's training camp as a second-rounder. Rahe became the all-time leader in conference wins in his 10th season and the Wildcats claimed the Big Sky's first neutral-site tournament title with three victories in Reno, Nev.
25. Luke Falk
Washington State quarterback
Previous ranking: NR
The level of high school football in the state has hit an all-time high in terms of recruiting interest and Falk, of Logan, represents the advancement of the sport in Utah as one of the country's top quarterbacks. Ironically, he was not heavily recruited before initially joining WSU's program as a walk-on. Cottonwood product Cooper Bateman could further elevate the state's football profile if he becomes the starting QB for No. 1-ranked Alabama.
Twitter: @tribkurt