Jazz Fans Were Not Kind To Gordon Hayward In His Return To Utah

Friday night is a big one for Gordon Hayward, as the Boston Celtics travel to Utah to take on the Jazz. Of course, Hayward was drafted by and spent the first seven years of his NBA career in Salt Lake City, only to leave the Jazz in free agency last summer and head to Boston.

While the Celtics played the Jazz last season, Hayward was unable to suit up following the season-ending injury he suffered during Boston’s first game of the 2017-18 campaign. Now, he’s 100 percent healthy and able to take the floor, meaning that Utah fans get to welcome him back for the first time since he left.

Since about 780 billion things have happened in society since then, you might forget that the circumstances under which Hayward left for the Celtics were a little odd — it was reported he made up his mind on joining Boston, then it was shot down, and a few days later, he announced he was leaving for Beantown. This made Utah fans mad, and on Friday, they got the chance to voice their discontent.

One guy managed to do this by making a Jazz jersey with Hayward’s old number that just said “COWARD” across the back.

I am willing to wager that this dude was among those in the crowd that let it rain down boos when Hayward was announced among the Celtics’ starters, too.

To Hayward’s credit, it looked like he had a smile on his face as he was hearing it from the Jazz faithful.

Hayward was beloved in Utah before he left, so it understandably hurt their fans when he decided to seek greener pastures in Boston. Something like this can be a cathartic experience, because even if he made an impact in a Jazz uniform, fans can have short memories when they see someone suiting up in a different uniform.