Markkanen had a very nice night overall. His +11 showed his overall positive impact in more than just scoring the ball. His 5 assists were nice and showed that he can move the ball within the office in a nice way. The only knocks are that he needs to be hitting his threes more. 1/4 from three for Markkanen is something he needs to do better, both in percentage and in amount taken.
Filipowski was a surprise start over Taylor Hendricks, and it was not very inspiring stuff. The idea was probably that his passing gave him an edge over Hendricks, but his negative plus/minus showed the weakness in his defense. Filipowski was also just 2/7 from the field and 1/4 from three for a sup par night all around.
Kessler made his debut tonight and had himself an incredible night. With a near triple-double of 14 points, 10 rebounds, and 8 assists, Kessler showed that he can be a very nice piece for the Jazz in the future. Kessler was 6/9 from the field and knocked down the only three he took. I wondered if Kessler could pass the ball like Jusuf Nurkic and Kevin Love have done so far this preseason, and he was absolutely up to the task. That may change as teams will inevitably drop back on him when he’s at the three-point line, but if he can knock down those threes from that spot, it changes this team in a huge way.
Mykhailiuk had a nice three-point shooting night for the Jazz, going 5/10 with 4 assists. Mykhailiuk has proven to be a competent player for Utah, but he isn’t a part of the long-term plan. With the team fully healthy, we likely don’t see him much down the road.
George had one of his most impressive games as a Jazzman tonight. His team-leading 20 points were fantastic on an efficient 7/11 from the field. He only had 2 assists, but his playmaking was huge for Utah. He is making the right passes and had multiple hockey-assist type plays where he’s making the right read. George deserves a ton of credit because he is likely feeling a ton of pressure to perform at a high level. This is definitely a bit of a make-or-break season, and if he plays like he did tonight consistently, he is looking like a major part of the team’s future.
Hendricks had the best +/- of all the bench players tonight. Personally, I was a little surprised he didn’t get the start. The good news is that his 24 minutes were good ones. He scored 8 points with 7 rebounds and 2 assists on very good efficiency and played solid all-around defense. It’ll be interesting to see where Hendricks falls once this season starts, but this consistent level of play should earn him a lot more time.
Sensabaugh’s shooting is becoming a real calling card for his game. The question is, what else can he bring to the game? Tonight, he brought down 4 rebounds and had a nice assist to Kessler, but there wasn’t much else to point to. There’s not a serious defensive impact, and he led the team with 4 turnovers. Hopefully, Sensabaugh can add more to his game because if the shot is not falling, it limits how effective a player he is. Luckily, it’s becoming rare that he doesn’t shoot the ball well.
Clayton has had similar nights all through preseason, where the shot isn’t falling, but he’s doing a lot of other things to help the team. He shot just 3/9 from the field and 0/4 from three but dished out 5 assists, grabbed 3 rebounds a 1 steal. There were a few times on the defensive end that the Blazers took advantage of his size. We’ll see if that becomes a trend or if he can overcome it.
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