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The Utah basketball program fired head coach Craig Smith midway through its 2024-25 season. That unexpected dismissal came while the team was largely exceeding preseason expectations.
The Utes were picked to finish dead last in the Big 12. They’re currently tied for ninth in the league standings. On-court performance didn’t seem to be the leading factor in the university’s decision.
Instead, NIL was at the root of the cause. Smith had been unable to effectively raise funds and create money-making opportunities for his student-athletes. AD Mark Harlan expanded on the firing in a statement after the fact.
“After evaluating our program under Craig’s leadership, I believe a change is needed to get us to where we want to go… We have continued to invest in our men’s basketball program, adding staff, increasing compensation and significantly enhancing NIL opportunities with our partners for our student-athletes. And our investments will only grow.”
-Mark Harlan
The timing couldn’t have been worse for Craig Smith. Utah basketball’s poor NIL situation aligned perfectly with rival BYU’s extravagant investment in its own program.
The Cougars hired former NBA assistant Kevin Young to take over when Mark Pope bolted for Kentucky. Those professional ties paid immediate dividends.
BYU was able to spend, and spend big. Young landed a pair of potential lottery picks in his first recruiting class. The program, with the help of Utah Jazz brass, then dropped nearly $5 million to sign top prospect AJ Dybantsa.
That spending resulted in quick success. The Cougars are 21-8 and on their way to the NCAA Tournament. The team is an eight-seed in Joe Lundardi’s most recent bracketology projections.
BYU was spending. Utah wasn’t. Their coach paid the price. Now, the Utes could mimic their bitter rival’s strategy in their next hire.
NBA assistant Alex Jensen is trending to be the next Utah basketball coach.
Sources: Dallas Mavericks assistant Alex Jensen has emerged as a primary candidate for the head coaching vacancy at Utah.
No offer has been made yet, but he’s at the top of the Utes’ list to replace Craig Smith.
Played under Rick Majerus and was an assistant with the Utah Jazz.
— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) March 4, 2025
Jensen has Utah ties. He previously coached with the Jazz before moving onto Dallas. He also played his college ball in Salt Lake City under Utes legend Rick Majerus.
Like Kevin Young, Jensen can market his NBA experience on the recruiting trail. He should be able to use his relationships to create NIL opportunities for players.
Utah has seen this tactic work out for BYU. It looks like they’ll try to emulate it with their next hire. If it works out, the Holy War could get a lot more interesting on the basketball court.