Utah
John Collins Is Having An Offensive Resurgence In Utah
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – NOVEMBER 04: John Collins #20 of the Utah Jazz dunks over Coby White #0 of the … More
As the regular season is slowly wrapping up, it’s time to look at some players – and teams – who won’t be participating in the NBA Playoffs.
John Collins is about to end his second season with the Utah Jazz, if he hasn’t already. The 6’9 forward is out with an ankle injury and hasn’t played since March 12th. While he’s practicing with the team, no official word has yet come in regards to his return.
The former Hawks forward has seen a bit of a career resurgence, in terms of offensive volume, despite being in and out of the lineup all year due to injuries, being limited to 40 games so far.
Getting back to scoring
Collins, who used to run the floor with Trae Young, had plenty of solid seasons in Atlanta, including one in which he averaged over 21 points and 10 rebounds, all while canning over 58% of his shots, including 40.1% from downtown.
To many, Collins looked like a future All-Star who would practically sleepwalk his way into a steady 20/10 line for as long as he played next to Young.
Instead, Collins saw his numbers decline – and heavily so – during the following three years with the Hawks, to point where his last season with the franchise saw him score just 13.1 points per game, and be viewed as a complete afterthought within the offense.
In 2023, Collins was moved to Utah, and while he saw just a modest uptick in scoring last season, he’s come back into the swing of things this year when he’s been available.
Collins is averaging 19 points per game, and is draining 39.9% of his three-point attempts, while seeing an uptick in free throw attempts.
The 27-year-old has admittedly played on a team in which top-tier talent hasn’t been particularly available, but that’s sprinkled in a new, and interesting, pattern of self-creation.
Collins has never created more shots off his own afford as he has this season, with only 64.7% of his two’s being assisted, compared to previous seasons where that number has found itself in the high 70’s.
Yes, the sample size is smaller than you’d want it to be, and spread out over just half a season, but that’s where the numbers and eye-test go hand-in-hand.
Collins is finding more gaps in the defense than before, and looks far more comfortable putting the ball on the floor than ever before.
This breaks a pattern of him being almost exclusively a play finisher, which was the case in Atlanta.
What does this mean for his future?
As far as Collins’ future goes, it’s tough to say. Lauri Markkanen and Walker Kessler are still around in Utah, and eventually Taylor Hendricks will make his return from a fractured right fibula.
That means more competition for the big man minutes, and with Utah likely having an eye on the future, Collins could find himself as the odd man out.
He’s attached to a contract which compensates him at a rate of $26.5 million in 2025-2026, assuming he picks up his player option.
After the season he’s having, in regards to finding his own rhythm again, it’s not a forgone conclusion he picks it up, although the market almost dictates a need to do so, with so few teams projecting to have any meaningful cap space.
Perhaps the Jazz would like him to stick, or perhaps Collins and them agree to find a trade that makes sense for both parties.
Regardless of the outcome, Collins certainly used his opportunity this year to make some much-need, and long-awaited, noise for himself.
Unless noted otherwise, all stats via NBA.com, PBPStats, Cleaning the Glass or Basketball-Reference. All salary information via Spotrac. All odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook.
Utah
Keller wins it in OT, Mammoth recover from Jets’ late rally | NHL.com
The goal was Connor’s 300th in the NHL. He is the third player in Jets/Atlanta Thrashers history to hit the mark, behind Scheifele (353) and Ilya Kovalchuk (328).
“Just a pretty cool milestone,” Connor said. “Once you look back on your career, that’s kind of the stuff you’ll remember. But right now it’s focusing on winning, trying to be the best player I can, and helping out.”
Connor scored his second goal at 15:23 of the third period, beating Vejmelka blocker side with a one-timer to cut the lead to 3-2.
“I think we just knew that we needed to be better,” Connor said of the comeback. “I think we were on our toes more, jumping and making plays and hemming them in.”
Barron scored just 25 seconds later, beating Vejmelka glove side with a snap shot tie it 3-3.
“That first period was ugly. It was really ugly,” Winnipeg coach Scott Arniel said. “We got better in the second, certainly dominated in the third, but at the end of the day, you can’t play two periods in this league and look to have success.”
Crouse gave the Mammoth a 1-0 lead at 5:20 of the first period. Guenther skated in from the blue line and shot through the legs of Jets defenseman Logan Stanley to put the puck on Hellebuyck. The rebound of his shot then found Crouse in front, where he scored blocker side with a slap shot.
“We made it interesting on ourselves,” Crouse said. “Definitely not the way we wanted the third period to go, but credit to our group, that’s not easy. They scored two right away and then we went right into OT pretty much, so credit to the group for having the right mindset and being able to get the win.”
Utah
Utah man with autism found after 10-day search
SALT LAKE CITY — August Beckwith, a 29-year-old Utah man with autism, has been found safe after disappearing for a second time in a matter of weeks.
“We are overjoyed and deeply grateful,” Lori Beckwith, August Beckwith’s mother, said in a post on Facebook Sunday. “Thank you to the many remarkable people who helped with compassion and kindness throughout. Wishing everyone a loving and peaceful Christmas.”
Beckwith had been missing for 24 days after disappearing from the University of Utah campus on Nov. 17. Lori Beckwith, August’s mother, had taken to Facebook to report when he had first been found.
The Beckwith family wishes for privacy at this time.
This story may be updated.
Utah
UDOT celebrates early opening of Mountain View Corridor connection to Utah County
SALT LAKE CITY (KUTV) — The Mountain View Corridor project connecting Salt Lake and Utah Counties was completed early, opening just in time for holiday travel.
The Utah Department of Transportation celebrated the early completion of the years-long project in a Friday event, with attendees able to walk the new road and take photos with Santa. The road and trails were opened to traffic after the event.
UDOT officials posted a video of the celebration, with the caption reading, in part, “This road and these trails are now yours.”
Commenters praised their work on the project—and the video itself—with some saying they’ve already driven on the new road.
“I almost cried when I went on the corridor today! It was done sooner than I thought so thank you!” one commenter wrote.
Another user called it the “best Christmas gift EVER!”
MORE | Mountain View Corridor:
Some Utahns were less pleased, bringing up concerns about the lights not operating correctly on the north end or complaints about future construction.
However, the video itself addressed the negative comments UDOT receives, specifically complaints about constant construction.
“The truth is, if you want a DOT that never does anything and therefore never inconveniences you…Well, that just ain’t us,” the post read. “We don’t do construction to you, we do it FOR you, because we ARE you. We all live here too.”
The Mountain View Corridor project, also known as the 2100 North Freeway Project, was designed to improve east-to-west traffic flow between I-15 and Redwood Road in Lehi. It also included “shared-use-paths” for pedestrians and cyclists.
UDOT officials said Redwood Road is one of the most congested roads in Utah County, following Interstate 15 and Pioneer Crossing.
Officials expect this could reduce Redwood Road delays by 75% and also help alleviate I-15 traffic in the area.
The project began in Spring 2024, with construction expected to finish in Spring 2026. UDOT officials said the project was completed four months ahead of schedule.
In order to complete the road and trails, crews moved 1.5 million tons of dirt and paved more than 350,000 square yards of concrete and asphalt.
“This new stretch of Mountain View Corridor provides meaningful relief for drivers in fast-growing Utah County,” said Carlos Braceras, UDOT Executive Director. “Opening this stretch ahead of schedule improves regional connectivity and provides drivers with safer, more dependable travel options as the area continues to grow.”
While the new extension is complete, UDOT officials plan to continue to extend the Mountain View Corridor in the future. They said the goal is for it to be a 35-mile freeway connecting Interstate 80 in Salt Lake County to State Route 73 in Utah County.
The next phase of the project is planned to begin in 2027 and will address the stretch from Porter Rockwell Boulevard in Herriman to Old Bingham Highway in West Jordan.
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