Utah Jazz Mailbag: Which Player Takes Biggest Leap?
Oct 22, 2024, 1:15 PM
SALT LAKE CITY – Welcome to the Utah Jazz mailbag where this week we look at which young player is poised to make the biggest leap in production this season.
Each week we will send out a prompt on X asking for the questions you have about the Jazz.
Then, we’ll respond to as many as we can in that week’s mailbag.
Mailbag: Which Jazz Makes The Biggest Leap?
Which young player takes the biggest leap this year?
— SkiandsportUtah (@utahsportsguy84) October 21, 2024
Question: Which young player takes the biggest leap this year?
Answer: This is an interesting question because there are multiple directions to go with this, and I don’t know if there is a wrong answer to open the season.
On one hand, Taylor Hendricks moving from a G League player for the first 40 games of the season last year to a (likely) starter on opening night is the biggest jump any one player has to make on this year’s Jazz roster.
Hendricks was thrown into the fire after last year’s trade deadline with mixed success, but will now be asked to defend the opposing team’s best player most nights, while further developing his offensive game.
SAY SOMETHING NICE ABOUT TAYLOR HENDRICKS!!! pic.twitter.com/UpQWLpnN5U
— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) October 16, 2024
That’s a huge change in expectation, and if Hendricks can keep his head above water, he’s probably the right answer.
By that logic, however, Brice Sensabaugh also deserves to be in this conversation after spending even more time in the G League last year and carving out a potentially significant role with the Jazz’s second unit.
Hendricks will be the fifth-best player in the Jazz’s starting lineup, while Sensabaugh may be the third-best coming off the bench behind Jordan Clarkson and John Collins.
With Isaiah Collier rehabbing from a hamstring injury, and Cody Williams still learning the ropes, Sensabaugh might find himself carrying a surprisingly large load of the offense.
🚨 𝗕𝗥𝗜𝗖𝗘 𝗕𝗨𝗖𝗞𝗘𝗧 🚨#TakeNote | @bricepsensa pic.twitter.com/ICA05OQ33L
— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) October 17, 2023
The second-year guard had a very solid preseason averaging 10.2 points per game while shooting 42 percent from the floor and 41 percent from three while flashing improved playmaking and rebounding skills.
Though their roles are different, I wouldn’t be shocked if by the end of the season, fans are debating whether Sensabaugh or Hendricks had the better sophomore campaign.
Now, with that in mind, my gut tells me Keyonte George is going to make the biggest leap.
George showed the brightest flashes of any of the team’s three rookies last season, and his performance in the preseason has only upped those expectations.
things we’ve missed this offseason:
|_ 📁 key threes pic.twitter.com/9AQoXs8btD— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) October 5, 2024
The Baylor product shot a stellar 48 percent from the floor and 45 percent from three in five appearances and was likely the Jazz’s second-best player in exhibition play.
If George can maintain even remotely similar shooting splits with an expanded role during the regular season it will be a monumental development for the Jazz who may have found their starting point guard of the future.
How many minutes are the JC’s going to play per game? If it’s under 20 will they be happy? If it’s over 20 do they win too many games?
— UJ (@Jazztimejones) October 21, 2024
Question: How many minutes will Jordan Clarkson and John Collins play?
Answer: Based on the amount of youth the Jazz have on the roster, I wouldn’t be surprised if we see both Clarkson and Collins play very similar minutes to what they averaged last year.
Clarkson averaged the second-most minutes at just over 30 per game while Collins came in third at 28 minutes.
That might be a touch high, but based on the rest of the team’s inexperience, injuries, a lack of depth in the backcourt, and the potential for foul trouble from Walker Kessler, I expect both players to average north of 25 minutes per contest.
buckets off the break 🎱 pic.twitter.com/Y2ZhdTyjN1
— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) October 19, 2024
However, I don’t think that will alter the Jazz’s expected win total much if at all.
While it’s difficult to deduce anything concrete from the preseason, it’s worth recognizing that Collins had the team’s fourth-worst plus-minus at -3.2 per game while Clarkson had the third-worst at -3.8.
As long as those two veterans are sharing the court with younger players like Collier, Williams, and Sensabaugh, the Jazz second units will struggle, regardless of how well Clarkson and Collins play.
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Ben Anderson is the Utah Jazz insider for KSL Sports and the co-host of Jake and Ben from 10-12p with Jake Scott on 97.5 The KSL Sports Zone. Find Ben on Twitter at @BensHoops or on Instagram @BensHoops.
