Utah
The Jazz Have One ‘Tough Question’ They Need to Answer
If the first quarter of this NBA regular season has shown anything for the Utah Jazz, it’s that this team has some work to do before becoming a serious competitor in a tough Western Conference.
The Jazz have kicked this year off with a 5-19 record, rank in the bottom two of the West next to the New Orleans Pelicans, rank in the bottom ten of the NBA for both offensive and defensive rating, and are well in line to have a shot at securing Cooper Flagg or another top prospect come next offseason.
And that top prospect next summer may be exactly what the Jazz could use in their long-winded rebuild process. Utah now enters the third year of the post-Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert era, and many still look at this roster wondering where the cornerstones for the future are.
It’s exactly the topic Bleacher Report and Grant Hughes addressed as they sounded off on one “tough question” for each NBA team so far into this season. For the Jazz, their entry was simple: where’s the cornerstone?
“It’s a good thing the Utah Jazz have a dozen first-round picks and an additional swap coming to them in the next five drafts because it doesn’t look like any of their recent selections is capable of being a foundational piece,” Hughes said. “It’s early for recent first-rounders Keyonte George, Cody Williams and Taylor Hendricks (currently out for the year), but none of them has shown clear starter upside this season… Now into the third year after trading away Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert to trigger a rebuild, it’s not clear the Jazz have anything approaching a cornerstone.”
Over the past three offseasons, the Jazz have done a strong job of piling together future assets and young players to help bolster their rebuild following the blockbuster Mitchell and Gobert deals. The progress made is impressive, especially considering their past three drafts and the first-round picks to come.
Yet, besides Lauri Markkanen, none on the roster have proven to be elite, All-NBA caliber talents. The arrow is starting to point up around Walker Kessler in his third year, but guys like the mentioned Keyonte George, Cody Williams, and Taylor Hendricks have all had some inhibiting factors to truly reaching their advertised ceiling.
The guys brought in from this summer and the two before it still have a ton of room to grow and have time on their side, but when comparing the Jazz to some of the other youth movements around the NBA, the talent is still a few steps away from truly stacking up.
Even through the recent struggles the Jazz have seen in the standings, they haven’t emerged with a top-five pick to truly position themselves with a top prospect. Utah has done well with late lottery picks and selections deeper in the first (or second) round all things considered. Yet, another cornerstone to pair next to Markkanen would be a significant addition to this budding young core.
Thankfully for the Jazz, this upcoming 2025 draft class presents a perfect opportunity to strengthen their current core of young players. Whether it be Flagg or another top-end prospect like Dylan Harper or Ace Bailey, there are tons of reasons for optimism looking ahead to next summer.
Things might not be pretty for the Jazz in wins and losses in the meantime, but there’s a light shining at the end of the tunnel.
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The Utah Jazz won their final summer league game against the Portland Trail Blazers 83-79. It was a fun game that came down to the wire, with a few Jazz players showing promise that could help the team.
The player who surprisingly didn’t help as much as you’d hope was Blake Hinson, who shot just 1/9 from three. Hinson was a sharpshooter for the Jazz last season, and it’s too bad that he couldn’t show that shooting stroke in the summer league. It’s likely not a big deal, but it would have been nice to see that shooting continue in the summer league. It does make you wonder why all the players who played for Utah last season, or will be getting regular minutes next year, didn’t shoot well in Las Vegas. Is that a trend? Or is it just a coincidence? It makes you wonder if the Jazz have been running hard practices, or if the players are tired from enjoying their time in Las Vegas? There’s no way to really know, but it’s interesting.
Utah’s strongest performer, in terms of plus-minus, was Bez Mbeng. He was a team-leading +14 and, even though he didn’t shoot the ball well either, his defense and intensity really shows on the floor. In this one, Mbeng had 4 steals and handled the ball for a lot of the game. He was also one of the top players in minutes with 20 in this one. I personally really like Mbeng and I’m rooting for him to make the team. I do think he can be a defensive-focused do-it-all player who could really contribute if he keeps improving.
Justin Harmon scored the ball well, leading the team in scoring with a team-leading 21 points. He had 6 free throws in this one and was a positive contributor overall. Harmon could be a nice addition to the training camp roster and, if he can show out, maybe he can earn himself a roster spot. He’s worth watching going forward at the very least.
And with that, the summer league is now over, and we now enter a long summer that will lead into one of the most exciting eras of Jazz basketball I can remember. It will be led by the best prospect in Jazz history to actually suit up for the Utah Jazz, and I can’t wait to see him develop into a superstar wearing the purple and blue.
Jon Anderson will be charged with moving the Orem school forward following the death of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk on campus last year.
(Bethany Baker | The Salt Lake Tribune) Incoming UVU President Jon Anderson poses for a photo with his family after an event announcing his selection at Utah Valley University in Orem on Friday, July 17, 2026.
BEAVER COUNTY, Utah — A massive community effort is underway as volunteers and Beaver County crews distribute thousands of sandbags to protect homes from the potential path of floodwaters.
After the Cottonwood Fires, residents have been waiting for weeks for relief to come in the form of rain, though officials now warn it may come all at once with an increased risk of flooding and debris flow.
Emergency Service Director Les Whitney believes that the fire has left plenty of debris to bring trouble for residents.
“We got a lot of water. We’re bringing debris with it, so tree branches, tree limbs, logs, lots of different size firewood, and that’s all in the creeks. We’re worried about that plugging up our bridges and stuff, so we have heavy equipment and excavators located in strategic places so that we can keep those bridges open,” said Whitney.
An estimated 140 homes and condominiums were spared from the flames, but remain in the paths of floodwaters.
Residents can also pick up sandbags at the Beaver County Sheriff’s Office or at the Beaver County Rodeo Fairgrounds.
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