According to a report from ESPN’s Pete Thamel and Jeff Borzello, Dallas Mavericks assisted coach Alex Jensen has accepted an offer to become the next head basketball coach at Utah.

Utah parted ways with former coach Craig Smith just 10 days ago, but the timing of the move certainly makes sense. Smith held a 65-62 record over four seasons and never led the Utes to an NCAA Tournament appearance. Utah is currently 16-14 (8-11 Big 12) and is not in the tournament picture as of right now.

Jensen, a Utah native, will return to his alma mater after spending over a decade as an assistant coach in the NBA, most recently with the Mavericks, where he was hired in July 2023.

 

Prior to that, Jensen spent 10 seasons with the Utah Jazz, but after everything the Mavericks have been through in the last several weeks, this feels like the perfect time for him to come back home.

Jensen was a standout player for the Utes during his time in Salt Lake City, earning Mountain West Player of the Year honors in 1999-2000 after averaging 13.1 points and 7.5 rebounds per game.

After a seven-year playing career in Europe, Jensen joined the coaching ranks as an assistant under his former head coach, Rick Majerus, at Saint Louis in 2007. He stayed there until 2011, when he took over as the head coach for the Canton Charge (NBA D-League).

In just his second season on the job, Jensen was named the NBA D-League Coach of the Year (2013) and shortly after that was added to the Utah Jazz’s staff as an assistant.

He’ll have a tough task in getting Utah back to prominence as a new member of the Big 12, one of the deepest and toughest leagues in college basketball. However, as a fan favorite and the perfect hire for the job, he’ll have all the support he could ever ask for in Salt Lake City.