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New Utah Jazz owner Ryan Smith tells Miller family 'we’re going to build on your legacy'

Ryan Smith grew up rooting for the Utah Jazz.

He played Junior Jazz basketball as a child.

He dreamed of one day suiting up for his hometown team as a pro.

“That part didn’t work out,” Smith said with a grin.

But on Wednesday morning, Smith, the Utah entrepreneur and billionaire founder of Qualtrics, realized a different dream, as he acquired majority ownership of his state’s NBA franchise.

“There’s not another team or another opportunity that we would do this with,” Smith said at a press conference at Vivint Arena.

The announcement marks a new chapter in the franchise’s history—a history that had been written by the Miller family for more than three decades.