The Utah Jazz announced that they have moved G Isaiah Collier to the Salt Lake City Stars. A player that myself and Jazz fans were ecstatic to get at the 29th pick just hasn’t shown enough thus far. Collier introduced himself and became an instant fan favorite with his performances during the Summer League and preseason. But sadly his bad spell of injuries continued with the right hamstring strain right before the start of the season. Because of that, he was sidelined for the first few weeks of the season.
Since he has come back, he has had to fight to regain his minutes against Patty Mills. And although there are some really bright flashes and great potential sightings, they’ve been overshadowed by his lack of consistency. That does make sense, especially for young players coming back from injury, getting back into NBA fitness, and missing the start of the season, so there was probably a lack of on-court chemistry and just the reality of adjusting to the NBA. Which realistically is completely normal for most players coming into the league.
Collier’s most complete game thus far was the blowout win against Portland, where he put up 12 points on 5/13 shooting, with 7 assists and 4 rebounds. But other than that, he just hasn’t been at his best.
> Isaiah Collier played like an absolute stud for the Jazz tonight 12 PTS 7 AST 3 STL 4 REB 5/13 FG
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> Collier's best-scoring game of the season so far, he had some really good minutes [pic.twitter.com/OzGGU0UkJc](https://t.co/OzGGU0UkJc)
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> — Jazz Lead (@JazzLead) [December 7, 2024](https://twitter.com/JazzLead/status/1865267728065733048?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)
For both Collier and Fans, by no means should moving to the G-League be looked at as a setback. He’s going to be getting lots of minutes which will only gain his confidence. It can also allow Collier the opportunity to work on the specific things the coaching staff has told him to improve on. And it will also give him the opportunity to play with Cody Williams and create better comorbidity with him as well.
I don’t understand why some fans think moving down to the G-League is bad. The G-League arguably is the second most competitive league under the NBA. It’s a great place for development, and you’re going to be getting tough competition every night with guys fighting for NBA jobs.
But this does give fans bigger reasons to watch more Salt Lake City Stars Games.
Anyways, in other news, where do you guys think AJ Dybantsa is choosing tomorrow?