Jazz Rookie Narrowly Misses Out on Significant Award

The first-year Utah Jazz guard had a strong January showing.
Feb 1, 2025; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA;  Utah Jazz guard Isaiah Collier (13) shoots the ball against the Orlando Magic during the second half at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Chris Nicoll-Imagn Images
Feb 1, 2025; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Utah Jazz guard Isaiah Collier (13) shoots the ball against the Orlando Magic during the second half at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Chris Nicoll-Imagn Images / Chris Nicoll-Imagn Images
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After getting off to an impressive start to the new year, Utah Jazz guard Isaiah Collier was nominated among a group of four first-year players to be the NBA's Western Conference Rookie of the Month for January.

However, he'll be coming up just short on the honors.

Per the NBA, San Antonio Spurs Stephon Castle has been named Western Conference Rookie of the Month, edging out other nominees in Collier, along with Memphis Grizzlies' Jaylen Wells and Phoenix Suns' Ryan Dunn. As for the East, it was Miami Heat big man Kel'el Ware taking home the respective award.

Collier put up a good fight in January to have a case for the award. The Jazz rookie played 14 games over the course of the month, and while Utah suffered from a 3-11 record over that stretch, their first-rounder looked solid by averaging 9.2 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 7.5 assists on 42.7% shooting from the field.

Collier even made enough of a strong impression to land a starting spot as of late, putting him alongside Collin Sexton in the backcourt, moving second-year guard Keyonte George to the second unit. He's taken the opportunity in stride, emerging as one of, if not the team's best playmaker and distributor on the roster.

Even with the positive showings, Castle was the one to take home the hardware. He finished the month averaging 14.9 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 3.6 assists.

Thankfully for Collier, he'll have some more time to get his deserved respect. Two more Rookie of the Month awards are left to go for February and March, and if the Jazz guard continues to move on the same path of production, it'll be hard to keep him out of consistent consideration.


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Jared Koch
JARED KOCH

Jared Koch is the Associate Editor of The Frozen Rope — SI.com's team website covering the Utah Jazz. He's covered the NBA and NFL for the past two years, also being the Managing Editor of Inside The Kings — SI.com's team website covering the Sacramento Kings.