Last Updated on May 24, 2025 3:29 pm by André Lemos | Published: May 24, 2025

The Jazz decided to pass on charging for the Play-In in 2023-24, opting instead to shut it down, sit their top guys and try to add more young talent at the top of the draft. Trade rumors were swirling constantly around Lauri Markkanen but the team decided to extend its All-Star, with just enough trade protection to carry him through this season’s trade deadline. It suggested that the Jazz were looking to compete to a certain extent, or at the very least see what their latest wave of prospects could add to a Markkanen-centric formula that has proven to be an intriguing one, if not a winning one just yet.

How’d It Go?

It depends on your point of view. The Markkanen extension was an organizational win overall for those who wanted to see Utah make some forward progress, and a little bit of continuity can go a long way in an era when most bottom-dwelling teams are clearly feeder systems for the league’s elite. On the other hand, Markkanen’s no-trade protection lasting literally one day beyond the deadline is a bit on the nose for what’s happening here, and the Jazz didn’t do much to prove the skeptics wrong. They finished with the worst record in the league and although most of their stretch run featured lineups that won’t be seen again in any quasi-competitive setting, the Jazz do seem to be buckling down for the long haul.

Markkanen’s season didn’t go as planned, which we’ll get to in a bit, and you can’t help but wonder if the Jazz have already missed their window to move him at peak value. His dip in effectiveness meant that Utah was basically dead in the water on the court, with Markkanen meant to carry a supporting cast of young players and veterans who are complementary pieces at best.

With Markkanen’s contract status on the back burner, eyes were on John Collins, who was surpassed by Taylor Hendricks last season. Hendricks earned the starting nod to begin the season but suffered a devastating leg injury early on, putting Collins back into the starting five and into the good graces of fantasy managers. He was not traded at the deadline — the same goes for Jordan Clarkson and Collin Sexton — after a few months of good play and it does feel like the Jazz are in two lanes. They’re content to hold onto NBA-caliber (or better) players unless their asking price is met, but also content to make those guys disappear for the second half of the season.

Keyonte George impressed to close out his rookie year but couldn’t gain any traction as a sophomore and eventually lost his starting PG spot to new rookie Isaiah Collier as the youth movement was in full swing. If there was one outright positive it was the play of Walker Kessler, who looked a lot more like the potentially dominant paint presence we saw for flashes in his first year as opposed to the frustrating production from 2023-24.

In the end the Jazz were a team destined for the lottery and they put their thumb on the scales to really hammer the point home. The young players got more reps, albeit not in situations that are likely to build real winning habits, and the older guys got plenty of time off. For their trouble, the Jazz finished in last place, and their reward was falling to the fifth pick in the draft lottery.

Coaching

How can anyone possibly evaluate Will Hardy after his first three seasons? Coaches and players are never out there to lose but the front office can certainly tie some hands behind backs, and that’s what Hardy has been dealt so far. It’s hard to be judged on wins and losses when the commands from on high feature lots of losing. The personnel moves make it difficult to even judge Hardy on the Xs and Os; nobody is going to succeed with the rosters he has been tasked with leading.

If anything, that the Jazz hang closer to the postseason chase early on is a mark in his favor. He has most definitely unlocked Markkanen, this year’s dip notwithstanding, and has seemingly done well to get veterans like Clarkson and Sexton to buy into changing roles. The revivals for Collins and Kessler also point to Hardy’s ability to motivate and develop, and if nothing else you have to give the Jazz credit for playing hard. Until we actually see how the organization operates when winning is the short-term goal, that’s all you can go off of. Hardy has passed the tests he’s been given to this point in his tenure.

The Players

Lauri Markkanen

PF, Utah Jazz

ADP: 30.0/38.7 (Yahoo/ESPN) | Total Value: 122/183 (8/9-cat) | Per-Game Value: 102/93 (8/9-cat)

Pretty much everything was off about Markkanen in 2024-25. Despite a brand new contract that cemented him as Utah’s foundational piece, and the removal of trade rumors from the equation, Markkanen struggled to replicate the smashing success of his 2023-24 season. He went from a borderline first-round value to someone who could barely scrape into the top-100. Markkanen’s shooting percentage collapsed, with his points and 3-pointers following suit, but his rebounds also plummeted as the Jazz plugged Walker Kessler into a 30-minute role. He had just five games of double-digit rebounds compared to 19 the year before. He had just 10 games of 25-plus points all year compared to 22 the year prior; he shot under .400 from the field in 21 of his 47 appearances. A career-low FG% was enough to eliminate all hopes of an early-round effort.

On top of all that, Utah’s top dog also missed more than his fair share of games. Markkanen battled back problems throughout the year but it all came crashing down after the All-Star break, as he missed nine straight with back troubles and then the final 13 with a left knee injury. Life was hard as defenses were able to lock in on Markkanen with no real threat of a second scorer rising to the challenge, and with the Jazz obviously lined up to tank there wasn’t a ton of urgency to get Markkanen back in high gear. In many ways it felt like Utah toying around to see what else might work with Markkanen proving his mettle in 2023-24, but that doesn’t provide any solace for fantasy managers who ended up with a total bust of a second- or third-round pick.

John Collins

PF, Utah Jazz

ADP: 106.8/129.4 (Yahoo/ESPN) | Total Value: 148/155 (8/9-cat) | Per-Game Value: 40/44 (8/9-cat)

When looking at Collins’ work in Utah, most of the discussion comes down to another player — Walker Kessler. Last season, the fit was abysmal, as the Jazz got steamrolled with Collins and Kessler together and improved drastically whenever Collins exited the floor. Since that was Collins’ most pressing issue overall, the 2024-25 season should be considered a success even without getting into the fantasy stats. The two bigs were able to play a lot more together and were able to make it work on offense, with the Jazz posting a 116.9 offensive rating in their time on the court.

The ADP reflects the overall negative attitude toward Collins after a rough first season with the Jazz, and some managers were prepared to ignore him entirely when news broke that Taylor Hendricks would start at PF to open the year. Hendricks’ devastating leg fracture put Collins back into his old spot almost immediately out of the gates and he ended up producing a bounce-back campaign that saw spikes in points, assists, steals and free throw percentage to go with modest gains elsewhere. The problem is that Collins ended up playing too well for Utah’s liking, and he wound up sitting 24 games after the All-Star break — eight for a back issue and the final 16 for a left ankle sprain. If Collins played in three-quarters of the team’s games he’d be a fantasy hero, but when the dust settled he authored a commendable bounce-back season that flew under the radar because of his late disappearance. That’s not bad at all considering the acquisition cost, and perhaps Collins gave managers a real reason to believe again in the years to come. He’s still only 27, after all.

Walker Kessler

C, Utah Jazz

ADP: 90.8/120.9 (Yahoo/ESPN) | Total Value: 77/67 (8/9-cat) | Per-Game Value: 65/47 (8/9-cat)

It was largely a positive season for Kessler, who rebounded from a frustrating sophomore season to become Utah’s most consistent fantasy option. The big thing here is the jump in playing time, as the Jazz made a concerted effort to surround Kessler with as much spacing as possible and committed to him logging true starter-level minutes. Seeing a non-shooter get 30 mpg is notable in this day and age, and it’s a strong endorsement of how the organization views Kessler as an on-court impact player. Credit also goes to Kessler, of course, as his added strength and physicality helped deafen the drawbacks of playing alongside John Collins after the pairing struggled in their first two seasons together. The points, rebounds and assists all rose as you would expect, but if there’s one nit to pick it’s that Kessler matched the previous season’s 2.4 blocks despite almost seven extra minutes per contest.

If there’s two nits to pick the second would have to be availability, as Kessler’s 58 games were the fewest of his three-year career. He missed five games with a hip injury in November and the final five of the season with a concussion, and in between it was mostly injury management days. That’s annoying to say the least but hopefully something that will vanish as the Jazz get competitive again (whenever that may be). If he continues this trajectory and the rest of the team picks up the slack on offense, it could be sooner rather than later. Kessler didn’t do maximum damage with his increased role but he looks to be back on the right path.

Collin Sexton

PG, Utah Jazz

ADP: 94.5/96.3 (Yahoo/ESPN) | Total Value: 104/148 (8/9-cat) | Per-Game Value: 114/154 (8/9-cat)

Sexton reestablished himself as a full-time starter this season, appearing in only two games off the bench after basically splitting time in his first two years with the Jazz. With Markkanen floundering and Jordan Clarkson unable to elevate his game, Sexton was essentially Utah’s only other credible NBA-level scorer. He was able to bring consistent effort to the table and emerged as a leader on a young team, which likely helped him log appearances deep into the season when others were getting held out of the lineup. Fantasy managers can appreciate his reliable scoring with positive percentages, and Sexton managed new career-highs in 3-point and free throw percentage to go with his quality mark from the field.

That’s all well and good, and it’s easy to see how Sexton can fit when this team is ready to try winning again, but he was unable to round out his fantasy game. Sexton’s lack of defense continued and the presence of both Keyonte George and Isaiah Collier limited his path to assists. There were spurts of middle-round value but when the dust settled, the breadth of production wasn’t there to push Sexton inside the top-100. He’s a bit too one-dimensional to treat as a bedrock player on a fantasy roster but you’d also be silly to turn down nearly 20 points per night on .480 shooting. There are worse lanes to occupy.

Keyonte George

SG, Utah Jazz

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Mike Passador

Mike graduated from Boston University’s Dual Degree Program with a BA in Economics and a BS in Business with Concentrations in Marketing and Operations Management. He is a faithful supporter of Toronto sports and the Detroit Lions and is always ready to be let down. Tweet to him @Mike_Pandador, but if you badmouth Jose Calderon you might get blocked.

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