As we wait to learn the eventual punishment for former Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora, the lingering question remains whether he will ever get another chance to manage in baseball.

Well, Cora has at least one supporter in the form of Boston Celtics president Danny Ainge.

During an appearance on Thursday’s “Toucher & Rich” Show on 98.5 The Sports Hub, Ainge praised Cora as a person and baseball leader. Ainge described Cora as a “terrific manager” and called the sign-stealing scandal “a bummer for the entire Red Sox organization.”

But would Ainge ever consider hiring Cora as a manager if it were up to him -- and Cora had served his punishment?

“Yes. I would consider doing it,” Ainge said. "I’m not saying I would for sure. I mean, there’s a time and a place that maybe it’s just not worth the distractions and what might come. But I wouldn’t dismiss it out of hand and say I wouldn’t. I would say I might.”

As the Boston fanbase and Red Sox organization continue to reel in the wake of Cora’s sudden departure and turmoil for the franchise, Ainge expressed disappointment that this may be the legacy that themanager leaves behind.

“What I don’t like about it is, we’ll judge him and remember him on something that wasn’t so good -- the scandal that happened in Houston and Boston,” Ainge said. “It’s unfortunate, because I’ll remember Alex as being a really good guy who got us a championship in 2018. I won’t remember him for this.”

Ainge stressed that what Cora did was “wrong," but did try to provide some context for Cora’s infractions. Ainge, who said said that he played “a little bit of baseball," discussed the “100-year culture” of sign-stealing in baseball

“It’s wrong, what was done," Ainge said. "But I think that center field cameras, and when you have (Dennis Eckersley) calling which pitch is coming when he’s doing broadcasts of the game because he can see the signs, I think there’s some responsibility there.”

The Red Sox announced Tuesday that Cora and the team had parted ways, pre-empting what’s expected to be a heavy punishment from Major League Baseball for his part in the sign-stealing scandals for the Red Sox and Houston Astros.