The Jazz leave the preseason with one win to their name — in case you were on the edge of your seat before the real tank battle begins. They edged off the Blazers on their home floor in a 132-129 win. Most of the players active tonight had their chance to shine, giving the fans the exact lineup that they were looking for in crunch time: Tonje, Harkless, Svi, Hendricks and Mo Bamba (!).
The story of the night had to have been Keyonte George; he’s clearly making the effort to prove he’s taking the leadership role he said he’d take on Media Day. Thus far, he’s been playing quality defense (quite a jump from one of the worst defenders in the NBA!) and has stood out as a possible starting PG candidate. There’s still a long way to go, but he’s been noticeably different out there on the floor on the playmaking end. He’s got the raw talent to be a valuable player in this league — he needs to put all the right pieces together. George finished with a team-high 20 points on 7-11 shooting.
Walker Kessler was surprisingly available for Utah’s preseason finale after dealing with left shoulder bursitis through the first three showings. I came here to report: Yes, he’s still the same Sheriff we all know and love.
My notes? Money-hungry Walker Kessler is not human. He did everything on the floor he needed to do — defend the rim, crashed the glass, passed to cutters, and most importantly: hit a triple! When life gives you lemons, you make apple juice — and that’s probably way better than what could’ve been if you just made lemon juice. He was two assists away from giving the Jazz a preseason triple-double. Kessler’s camp is geared up to make sure he gets the contract he deserves.
Walter Clayton Jr. finished with 8 points, 3 rebounds and 5 assists in 19 minutes. Though he did shoot 3-9 from the field and 0-4 from deep. In his four outings, he’s shown he can be a savvy passer who can create opportunities for his teammates and is adept at moving around Kessler/Nurkic. But if the shots don’t fall, it’s a similar situation to Isaiah Collier, where you have to make up for poor efficiency by making an impact everywhere else.
There’s a saying that goes, “Stand up for what you believe in, even if you stand alone”. When everyone in the Jazz fanbase wants Svi Mykhailiuk cut, you persevere and continue to believe he can be a serviceable sharpshooter in the NBA. The Ukrainian recorded 15 points, 5-10 ‘Svi’-pointers and buried a clutch three to give Utah the lead. Expect more minutes from the vet going into the regular season — Hardy has turned to him all preseason, appearing in the starting lineup in 3/4 games.
The Finnisher completed tonight with 15 points, 3 rebounds and 5 assists on 6-10 field goals. His playmaking was a sight to see — some great passing between him and Kessler. He was super productive in only 21 minutes of play. Some decent off-ball movement and little tidbits on the side that’ll round out his offensive game. I cannot express enough how much I’m excited for an Ace, Lauri and Kessler front court, so I’ll express how I basically imagine they’ll play like:
The next game will be at the Delta Center on Wednesday, October 22nd, where they will begin the 2026 NBA Season against the Los Angeles Clippers.
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