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SALT LAKE CITY — Sure, Quin Snyder's first game coaching against his former team since resigning as the Utah Jazz's head coach technically occurred on Feb. 27 at State Farm Arena in Atlanta.
But Friday's matchup between the Jazz and Hawks marked his first time back at the Delta Center, and he acknowledged that his return was an emotional experience.
"Yeah, it feels tremendous to be back," Snyder said in his pregame media session. "I'm just reminded of so many people that touch your life."
Indeed, he went on to rattle off a sizable list of those who played an important role in his eight years leading the Jazz — the current owners, the former owners, several past and present front-office executives, the head coach's personal assistant, even the public relations staffer he worked with most closely.
Looking much like the Snyder of old, boasting his curly locks and clad in a black polo shirt, black skinny jeans, and black sneakers, but adorned this time with bright red-framed glasses to match the color scheme of his new team, he greeted myriad well-wishers in the arena's hallway near the visitors' locker room in the hours before tipoff.
When Snyder announced his departure from the Jazz franchise on June 5, 2022, he said in a statement that there were "no philosophical differences" with the organization driving his decision, merely that, "I just feel it is time to move onward."
In the aftermath, he spent some time traveling with his family and recharging, then eventually took over as Atlanta's coach midway through last season on Feb. 26, 2023 — after the Hawks and Jazz had already completed their two-game season series.
So the Hawks getting into Salt Lake City on Thursday gave him a chance to reminisce for a bit.
"I drove up to our old house on Twickenham and wanted to take a peek at that (place) we lived in when I first got here, and sent a couple pictures to my kids," Snyder said. "Just lots of fun memories."
He also made certain during this trip to make a visit to Publik Coffee Roasters with assistant coach and longtime lieutenant Igor Kokoskov, "because we used to do that all the time."
Snyder and his Jazz successor, Will Hardy, were actually tangentially connected even before the latter took over for the former in Utah, as each cut his teeth in the NBA ranks as a member of the San Antonio Spurs organization.
Though their overlap in San Antonio was just for a brief few months in 2010, they've still connected over the years.
"Yes, Quin and I have a relationship," Hardy said. "He was in Austin (as the G League affiliate coach, and), obviously, I was in San Antonio for a long time. We know a lot of mutual people. I have great respect for him as a coach.
"He's somebody that I've communicated with over the years. He's always been very generous to me, very kind to me. And when the transition happened and I came in, he reached out and just sent me a very positive message about his experience in Utah. And he was very happy for me to be coming here."
Hardy added that he didn't subsequently reach out to request any advice or suggestions, considering that, "When I came in, pretty quickly there were a lot of large-scale changes, so it wasn't the same thing."
Indeed, the team turnover in the intervening years has been massive; in Friday night's matchup, the only player on the Jazz roster who was part of the Snyder regime was shooting guard Jordan Clarkson, who sat out of the matchup on account of injury.
Though the Jazz ultimately kept Snyder's return from being a triumphant one — prevailing 124-122 when Atlanta's Vit Krejci missed a game-winning 3-pointer just before the final horn — the trip was still special for the coach, who received a touching video tribute from the organization during pregame introductions, followed by a thunderous ovation from the Delta Center crowd.
"This was such an important and special time in my life. ... I'm just happy to be where I am in Atlanta with my family, (but also) I am happy to be back here and grateful for the opportunities that I've had," Snyder said.
