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Danny Ainge disputes claim that he was pushed out by the Celtics
After retiring from the Celtics in June, Ainge accepted a role with the Jazz on Wednesday.
Danny Ainge’s retirement from basketball came to a quick end. On Wednesday, it was announced that Ainge would become the CEO and an alternate governor of the Utah Jazz.
Ainge accepted the new role six months after he stepped down as Celtics’ president of basketball operations, leading several people to speculate if Ainge ended his time in Boston on his own accord.
In an interview with The Boston Globe’s Dan Shaughnessy, Ainge was asked if the Celtics indeed ended his time in Boston.
“No,” Ainge said laughing, according to Shaughnessy. “Are you serious? Do you seriously think that, or is that just like some commentary?”
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Shaughnessy compared his conversation with Ainge to an interview Jerry Seinfeld had with Larry King in which the latter asked the former if his show “Seinfeld” was canceled or not.
In his interview with Shaughnessy, Ainge reiterated that he “was prepared to be done for good and find something else” outside of basketball before the opportunity with the Jazz came up. He also stuck by his story that he made the decision to leave the Celtics months in advance but was surprised with what happened in Boston in the immediate aftermath.
“I just felt like I needed a break, well before the playoffs started,” Ainge told Shaughnessy. “And I also felt like the team was in great hands. When I decided to walk, I didn’t think that Brad [Stevens] would take over my spot. I thought that Brad would still be coaching. I just wanted to get away from the game for a while, and I’ve done that for seven months and I feel reenergized and I have a unique opportunity to work with a good friend [Jazz owner Ryan Smith]. This is a much different role [than in Boston]. It’s a much lesser role. It happened quickly, over a period of a couple of days when I finally showed a little interest with Ryan.”
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Even though he’s no longer with the Celtics organization, Ainge admits that he’s watched every Celtics game so far this season. After 26 seasons with the Celtics as a player (eight) and the president of basketball operations (18), he shared that he has “so many relationships” from his time in Boston.
“Those relationships don’t die, when you invest that much time in people,” Ainge said. “Maybe there’s a time down the road where I won’t do this, but I still follow Avery Bradley and Rajon Rondo and still stay in touch with them.
“I think today’s Celtics have a very bright future. I think those guys are special people and special players. They need the right guys around them and they need help. They’re not going to be able to do it alone.”
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