Celtics

Ainge stepped down as the Celtics' president of basketball operations in June.

Danny Ainge Celtics
Danny Ainge appears to be on the search for his next job. Elise Amendola/AP

Not long after Danny Ainge announced his retirement from the Celtics in June, rumors began to swirl on what he would do next.

Speaking to the Boston Globe’s Dan Shaughnessy, Ainge kept the door open on returning to the NBA in some form. However, Ainge doesn’t want a job similar to the demands of his previous role.

“I want to work again,” Ainge told Shaughnessy. “I just don’t want to do the crazy lifestyle that I had for the last 18 years. I have nothing right now. I just got done with a long walk and swim this morning. And taking my wife to tennis. We just got back from spending lots of time with our parents that we haven’t seen since the pandemic started, so we had some good times with our family and there’s nothing on the horizon as I see it.”

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Shaughnessy noted that Ainge was on the West Coast when they spoke. The Jazz – who play in the state where Ainge went to college (BYU) and still has family – and the Trail Blazers – who play in Ainge’s native state of Oregon – are the two teams that Ainge has been rumored to join.

When Jazz executive vice president Dennis Lindsey moved to an advisory role with the team in June, it was reported that Ainge could be “in play” for a front-office role in Utah. The Athletic’s Tony Jones reported that Justin Zanik will lead the Jazz’s front office, meaning Ainge would be in a smaller role.

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Ainge also confirmed to Shaughnessy that his house in Wellesley is for sale, but he’s “not moving for sure. We’re not certain on that.”

When the Celtics announced that Brad Stevens would replace Ainge, they also said that Ainge would be working with the team “on transition planning through the upcoming offseason.” Since then, the Celtics have hired Ime Udoka to be their next head coach and traded Kemba Walker to the Thunder for Al Horford and Moses Brown.