Utah Jazz: Dennis Lindsey, Kevin O'Connor to team in expanded Jazz brain trust

O'Connor joined the Jazz after the NBA Finals runs in 1999 and helped rebuild Utah into a playoff team after the departures of John Stockton and Sloan and then following the surprising exits of Sloan and Deron Williams.

Though occasionally criticized for things such as Andrei Kirilenko's $86 million deal and drafting Raul Lopez instead of Tony Parker, O'Connor has received much praise for trading up to draft Williams in 2005 and for bringing overlooked talents like Paul Millsap, Wesley Matthews and Mo Williams into the league.

During the press conference, Jazz owner Gail Miller shared a sweet sentiment with O'Connor.

"We're very grateful that you're staying on, that you'll continue to be a part of the Utah Jazz," a teary-eyed Miller said. "We need you. We appreciate you. You can mentor a lot of people that will look to you for the wisdom that you have."

Miller teased herself for shedding a few tears.

"Emotions run deep in the Jazz family," she said. "I know Larry would be crying if he was here."

Miller, whose organization is well known for being loyal, also told Lindsey: "The only thing you can do to lose our support is do something really, really crazy."

Lindsey's family will take a previously planned vacation in the next week before he returns to Utah to get to work — and finishes up exit interviews in San Antonio to leave on a good note. His wife, Betty, will eventually return to search for a Salt Lake City-area home and schools for their children.

Lindsey said he has respected Utah's organization from afar, even when he worked for the Rockets and Stockton hit that famous shot over Charles Barkley in Houston to send the Jazz to the 1997 NBA Finals.

Lindsey, who played college hoops for Baylor from 1988-92, believes his San Antonio experience gives him a unique perspective on how to help the Jazz. He listed similarities, including both teams being in small markets, having competitive natures, taking a "no-nonsense" approach to basketball, believing in working hard and "doing the right things."

Lindsey only hopes to "complement" the strong Jazz tradition of winning. He lauded the key figures in building this organization into a well-respected NBA franchise, including the Millers, Frank and Scott Layden, Sloan and Phil Johnson, Stockton and Karl Malone, among others.

"I'm not trying to change a culture," he said.

That said, Lindsey is a big believer in advanced statistics, so there could be changes on how the organization works with that mathematical trend. He'll wait to evaluate before making other implementations.

First off for Lindsey, though, is building relationships within the Jazz organization — with the front office, to Tyrone Corbin and the coaching staff, to the players and periphery employees.

"My message to Ty was short and sweet," Linsdey said. "I want a relationship built upon honesty and respect."

Corbin was impressed by Lindsey's humble approach.

"It's about the team and the organization and what's best for that," Corbin said, referring to Lindsey's mindset, "so I'm looking forward to working with him."

Rigby admitted the team made only one job offer — to Lindsey.

And the new general manager's thoughts on the current status of his new team?

"My assessment," Lindsey said, "is that Kevin and the organization have done an outstanding job to come out of the Layden-Stockton-Malone-Sloan era and to be standing on firm, steady ground, to stand for something, to have veterans that are young veterans that have good young players that can be developed and that will improve, to have great flexibility, hopefully to keep the core intact, I feel incredibly fortunate to be here standing in front of you guys here today with a great core and flexibility."

Email: jody@desnews.com, Twitter: DJJazzyJody