It’s time for Ryan Smith to fire Danny Ainge.
The fifth-place finish in the NBA lottery was the last straw. This guy’s ideas have gone nowhere.
Most depressingly, he has erased the mantra of overachievement that had hung over the Utah Jazz since the Frank Layden days. They were always the small-market team that exceeded expectations.
No more. After hoarding draft picks for a couple years by trading good players who were fun to watch, Mr. “We’re ready to go big game hunting” couldn’t bag a single trophy.
So he did the unthinkable: losing on purpose. Tanking is the lowest professional sports strategy.
And it was always a foolish risk, given the NBA’s policies to discourage it. Cooper Flagg? There was never more than a one-in-seven chance. The fifth-place pick? That was close to one in two. But Ainge liked those odds.
Smith will be lucky to ever reach the level of consistent quality the Miller family brought the team, but there is no firing the owner.
Ainge may have brought rings to Boston Garden, but the leprechauns don’t travel. It’s time for Smith to go big game hunting for a new CEO. He may have to look beyond BYU alumni.
Tim Fitzpatrick, Torrey
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