Jazz HC Reveals When Keyonte George's 'Future' as a PG was Decided
Something has shifted for the Utah Jazz. This team might be 3-7, but Utah has stumbled onto a new formula for the starting lineup that has made a palpable difference.
With Walker Kessler out and still recovering from injury, Jazz coach Will Hardy shuffled the lineup, moving John Collins to the center spot, with Ochai Agbaji filling one of the forward slots alongside Lauri Markkanen, and rookie Keyonte George taking over the point guard duties alongside Jordan Clarkson.
The Jazz are 1-1 with this new collection of starters, but anyone who's paying attention can see how much of an improvement it's been over the season-opening starting lineup. Both Agbaji and George have brought a lot to the Jazz's new synergy, but it's the rookie who has everyone buzzing.
Selected with the No. 16 pick in this year's draft out of Baylor, George has quickly leapfrogged several veterans at the one. While many analysts projected George finding his way to the starting lineup sometime this season, not too many expected it to be at point guard, especially with the logjam the Jazz have at the position.
Over his two starts at the one, George has been great at running Hardy's offense and distributing the ball, totaling 20 assists and just three turnovers. The rookie's shooting hasn't been on the same level, but the Jazz have been happy with his decisions to take the shots that he has.
After Friday night's win over the Memphis Grizzlies, Coach Hardy talked about how George has been able to succeed at the one.
"Watching him on film, he has a good feel and a good pace," Hardy said post-game. "The pace that he plays at allows him to see the floor and make good decisions. He also has a really good skill set in terms of being able to play with both hands. He makes a lot of passes with his left hand."
Indeed, George's feel has been a vast improvement over the slashing style of Talen Horton-Tucker. But when did Hardy realize that George's destiny was to play point guard?
"This summer—conversations with him and then watching him play Summer League and then obviously being in our gym all summer—you started to really see the passing, which I think we thought was there," Hardy said. "Maybe not at this level, but once we saw his ability to sort of get the ball where it needs to go, based on his size and ball handling and those things, it was sort of a no-brainer that playing the one is sort of where we think his future is."
These new developments might be great for George and the Jazz's long-term outlook, but it's not the best of news if your name is Horton-Tucker or Collin Sexton. However, Sexton has always been best coming off the bench, and while THT stepped up after the All-Star break last year, emerging with some big-time performances, he hasn't been able to translate that momentum into this new campaign.
George's initial impact as the point guard has been impressive and timely. But Hardy doesn't anticipate the rookie being that good every night. The knack of ball distribution and the talent for passing have allowed George to begin building chemistry with the veterans in the starting lineup, including Markkanen, Clarkson, and Collins.
"I don't expect him to go every three games having 20 assists and three turnovers, but I would say right now, he's just showing a poise at that spot and a pace of play that seems to be beneficial for our whole team," Hardy said of George. "He knows when to get Lauri [Markkanen] the ball, he's been good at setting up 'JC' [Jordan Clarkson], he and John [Collins] have a pretty good relationship on pick-and-roll, so right now, he's doing a really good job."
George will definitely look to improve his efficiency as a shooter from the floor. But the Jazz believe that so long as he keeps making the right decision of when and how to pull up and shoot, it's only a matter of time before the makes start raining down.
"He's probably sitting in the locker room saying, 'Man, I was 2-for-12,' but I'm not even looking at that part of the stat sheet because, again, I think a lot of the shots he took were the right ones," Hardy said. "For him to move the ball around the way he did tonight is a big step."
George finished with just seven points on Friday night, shooting a woeful 16.7% from the floor. But he did take 12 shots. Knowing what we do about his talent for scoring, the shots will soon start dropping through the net.
Combined with his natural affinity for running the floor, the future looks bright for the Jazz with George at the one. It'll be interesting to see how the starting lineup shifts upon Kessler's return to the lineup.
The odd man out will likely be Agbaji, but if George sustains this level of momentum, it'll be hard for anyone to supplant him at the one in Utah's starting lineup. Next up, the Jazz host the Portland Trail Blazers on Tuesday night.
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