Ryan Smith Reacts To Utah Basketball Hiring Alex Jensen As Head Coach
Mar 6, 2025, 2:13 PM
Ryan Smith laughs as he talks with his wife, Ashley, both owners of the Utah Jazz, during an NBA basketball game between the Utah Jazz and the Minnesota Timberwolves held at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, Feb. 28, 2025. (Photo courtesy of Isaac Hale, Deseret News)
(Photo courtesy of Isaac Hale, Deseret News)
SALT LAKE CITY – With Utah Basketball’s hiring of Alex Jensen all but finalized, Utah Jazz and Utah Hockey Club owner Ryan Smith took to social media to give his take on the Utes’ new head coach.
Smith had very high praise for Jensen and gave props to Utah for the hire.
Excited for Alex and Natalie to be back in Utah. They are amazing people who give everything they have to the organization. Great hire for Utah. https://t.co/EuuwQ5oigM
— Ryan Smith (@RyanQualtrics) March 6, 2025
“Excited for Alex and Natalie (Jensen) to be back in Utah,” Smith wrote. “They are amazing people who give everything they have to the organization. Great hire for Utah.”
A little over a week ago on February 24, it was announced that Utah and former head coach Craig Smith would part ways in a shocking move. Josh Eilert was named the interim head coach to finish the 2024-2025 season.
A few days ago, news broke that Jensen was the top candidate to fill the vacancy for next season. KSL Sports’ Utah Insider Steve Bartle revealed that Jensen had been the top target since the process began.
“Jensen has been considered the top target since this process began and the early buzz validates that belief. He is far and away the leading candidate and focus in Utah’s search. There has been a lot of communication between Utah and Jensen this week, including a meeting in Los Angeles on Tuesday. It seems this is trending in a direction many Utah fans would hope. Given Jensen’s current role and the obligations there, it adds a layer to the process and timing, but again, the buzz is positive here.”
Finally, ESPN’s Pete Thamel officially broke the news this morning.
RELATED: Behind The Scenes In Utah’s Pursuit Of Alex Jensen For Head Coach
Dallas Mavericks assistant Alex Jensen has accepted the job as the next coach at Utah, sources tell me and @jeffborzello. He’s a former star player there and has been an NBA assistant since 2013. He’s a former head coach of the Canton Charge in the G League.
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) March 6, 2025
More Reactions To Alex Jensen Named Next Utah Basketball Head Coach
Alex Jensen as the new @UtahMBB has me HYPED pic.twitter.com/QFYcX6lro0
— Holly Rowe (@sportsiren) March 6, 2025
Alex Jensen is the right hire for this program. We’ve seen BYU take the pro development route in recruiting and it’s paying off. Now the #Utes take that road and it’s smart! His 12 seasons coaching in the #NBA will be appealing to kids who want to play pro ball someday. https://t.co/Lpb7o4fp1X
— Sam Farnsworth (@Samsworth_TV) March 6, 2025
Alex Jensen returning to Utah to take over the Utes just made too much sense.
Good to see Utah’s administration not try to get cute and make this harder than it needed to be. Identified their guy quickly and went all in.
— Scott Garrard (@ScottyGZone) March 6, 2025
Alex Jensen is well-liked in Dallas and likely to have the chance to finish out the season with the Mavs if desired. But he’s ultimately on his way now to head coaching in the college game at his alma mater.@JakeLFischer on the NBA-to-college pipeline: https://t.co/LuRqBu6KL0 https://t.co/dYfKJLv8Dk
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) March 6, 2025
About Alex Jensen
Jensen played high school basketball at Viewmont in Bountiful, Utah, where he was named Mr. Basketball after his senior season in 1994. He committed to the University of Utah where he would play in the 1994-95 season as a freshman. He left to serve a mission for two years and returned for three more seasons from 1997 to 2000.
He helped lead the Utes to four NCAA tournament appearances including the 1998 national championship game. Jensen finished his Utah career with 1,279 points and 896 rebounds.
In seven seasons as a professional basketball player, Jensen played in Turkey, Spain, Japan, and the Continental Basketball Association. He hung up the shoes in 2007 and became an assistant college coach.
In 2011, he moved to the NBA G League to become the head coach of the Canton Charge. Two years later, he accepted a position as an assistant coach for the Utah Jazz. Jensen would spend another decade in Salt Lake City as an assistant.
Finally, Jensen would spend two years in Dallas from 2023 to 2025 as an assistant coach for the Mavericks.
