30 teams, 30 days: Utah Jazz | 2026 Season Preview

Welcome to my 30 teams in 30 days series, the most comprehensive and informative previews for every team in the NBA. Inside these posts, you’ll get up to speed with every team’s offseason additions and their roster hierarchies, learn whether they’ve addressed their biggest areas of need, ponder over 5 questions that will define their season and then decide whether you agree with my offseason grades and record predictions.

Notable Additions: Ace Bailey, Walter Clayton Jr., Kyle Anderson, Kevin Love, Georges Niang, Jusuf Nurkic, John Tonje

Notable Subtractions: Jordan Clarkson, Collin Sexton, John Collins, Johnny Juzang, Jordan Springer

Depth Chart:

PG: Isaiah Collier / Walter Clayton Jr

SG: Keyonte George / Brice Sensabaugh / Svi Mykhailuk / Elijah Harkless

SF: Ace Bailey / Cody Williams / Georges Niang / John Tonje

PF: Lauri Markannen / Taylor Hendricks / Kyle Anderson / Kevin Love

C: Walker Kessler / Kyle Filipowski / Jusuf Nurkic / Oscar Tshiebwe

Roster Hierarchy:

Franchise: N/A

Core: Lauri Markannen, Ace Bailey, Kyle Filipowski

Key Rotation: Keyonte George, Isaiah Collier, Walker Kessler, Brice Sensabaugh, Georges Niang, Walter Clayton Jr

Rotation: Taylor Hendricks, Kyle Anderson, Svi Mykhailuk, Jusuf Nurkic, Kevin Love

Development: Cody Williams, John Tonje, Elijah Harkless, Oscar Thsiebwe

Offseason Overview:

The Jazz got fined for violating the player participation policy last season since they were sitting their healthy, impactful vets to try and improve their draft odds. They wasted no time streamlining their tanking strategy this year, going as far to attach draft capital to send Collin Sexton to CHA in return for Jusuf Nurkic, simultaneously lifting one of their biggest competitors’ floor while lowering their own.

Utah has created a team so precocious that they’ll likely be able to tank organically this year without any availability shenanigans. Lauri and Walker are still here to provide a semblance of competitive backbone without compromising the tank, while Ace Bailey and Walter Clayton Jr step into the voids left by Jordan Clarkson and Collin Sexton. Their goal is clear, evaluate the young guys while hopefully securing a T3 pick in one of the most anticipated draft classes this decade, then retool rapidly around their new franchise cornerstone.

Pre-Draft Areas of Need:

🥇 Advantage Creation: Bottom 5 in PNR, Iso & Post-Up PPP, 30th in Pass% on Paint Touches

🥈 Ball Security: Worst TOV differential in NBA history (-444 more than opponents), most games in the last decade with 25+ TOVS

🥉 Positional Size: 2nd to last in Size (Height + 0.5 * (Wingspan - Height), 24th OPP OREB%

UTA moved on from their most high-volume self-creators, plugging in some turnover-averse rookies into their usage.

Season Outlook:

1. What’s the long-term plan with the guard position?

The Jazz struggled mightily with turnovers last year, mostly due to their young guards inability to take care of the ball. Isaiah Collier is the best playmaking guard on the roster (21.3 potential assists per 100), but struggled mightily in lost-ball turnovers, ranking in the 1st % in non-passing turnover % (13.5%). Keyonte was much better (7.5 non-pass turnover %) and was the more efficient scorer overall, though he wasn’t nearly as productive as a passer.

Utah will need to identify which skillset they value most from their potential lead guard, Collier’s playmaking or Keyonte’s volume scoring, since UTA was nearly 9 points WORSE with both of them on the court together than with 1 of them on. It’ll come down to whatever improvement is more projectable: Isaiah’s TO issues and lack of scoring gravity or Keyonte’s scoring inefficiency.

2. How can the Jazz further empower Kyle Filipowski?

Flip was a monster in Summer League, averaging 23.2 PPG on a blistering 63.7 TS%, showcasing one of the premier big-man offensive skillsets in the league. Kyle’s touch shined in the short midrange in the NBA, shooting 56.2% on 4.3 short midrange attempts per 100. He has an extremely unique intersection of shooting, passing and handling skills for a big man that can allow him to overcome his limitations as a defender if his offense is fully optimized.

Utah should run their offense through Flip when he’s on the floor, where his screening and handoff ability can help minimize the turnovers created from Collier and Keyonte attempting to create advantages out of a standstill. Because Flip can handle so well for a big, he’s also a natural offensive complement to a mammoth rim protector like Walker Kessler, utilizing his passing to tap into Kessler’s vertical spacing and maybe even unlocking some inverted PNR.

3. How will UTA parse through their young talent?

Ace Bailey (5th overall) and Walter Clayton Jr. (18th pick) are joining a roster that already features Walker Kessler (22nd overall in 2022), Taylor Hendricks (9th overall in 2023), Keyonte George (16th overall in 2023), Brice Sensabaugh (28th overall in 2023), Cody Williams (10th overall in 2024) and Isaiah Collier (29th overall in 2024), as well as NBA 2K26 Summer League MVP Kyle Filipowski (32nd overall in 2024). That’s 9 first-round picks (technically 8 but I’m including Flip) from the last 4 years, without a potential franchise cornerstone.

There are still wins in this talent pool, Brice Sensabaugh is 1 of 7 players (a list of ATG shooters) to shoot > 39% from 3 and > 89% from the FT line per @mikegrib8, Walker Kessler is an elite rim protector and play finisher and Flip is a really intriguing offensive weapon, though this return is still a reminder that pick-heavy trade packages don’t always recoup star value. The biggest task for UTA is identifying which of these 9 guys are foundational core pieces, and they’ll have plenty of burn to do so with the vets shipped off.

1. Is retaining Lauri a smart decision?

Lauri had a down year amidst all the manufactured roster attrition, which may have sapped some of his interest around the league. In hindsight, Utah deciding not to capitalize on the peak of his value following the 2023 season was likely the signal that they viewed him as a long-term foundational piece. The ensuing years have made it even more clear the Markkanen is a ceiling raising player whose one of the best play finishers in the sport, not an offensive engine that can drag poor rosters to success.

His archetype makes him immensely valuable to teams that want to contend, but those teams usually don’t have the tangible assets to satiate Utah’s desire for talent. They’ve already tried the picks > players method, which is why the messaging this summer has consistently stated Lauri is here to stay unless they get absolutely blown away. This approach checks out for me, especially considering Utah already struggles to bring in top-tier talent and Lauri is one of the more portable volume scorers who can fit with whoever they decide to install as the cornerstone next season.

5. Will Utah regain their home court advantage?

Last season was the first time Utah had a losing record at home since 2014, a rarity in their franchise history. Historically, Delta Center has been one of the tougher places to play as the 2nd highest elevation in the league, arguably one of the biggest reasons why Utah and Denver have one of the better home records relative to their record. This team will most likely continue to perform better at home vs away, but I expect this unit to record back to back losing records at home for the first time since 1981-1982.

Record Prediction

Total Wins Over/Under: 18.5 via BetMGM

Floor: 20–60 (+3 wins)

Utah has the lowest over/under in the league for a reason, but with the league as a whole getting more competitive, the bar to be a bottom 3 team in the league is likely somewhere around 20 wins. They should be able to achieve that relatively easily.

Ceiling: 29–53 (+12 wins)

Ainge will probably hit the comically large red self-destruct button if UTA gets anywhere close to 30 wins, though it may not be the worst thing since teams in that range have been rewarded in previous draft lotteries.

Let me know if you agree with my predictions! What are your expectations for the Jazz this season?

Overall Grade: B

Up Next: Washington Wizards