Keyonte George's Biggest Excitement for Jazz Season May Surprise You

Keyonte George is heading into a big-time fourth season with the Utah Jazz.

Coming off of a career-best season in 2025-26 that was able to net him a fresh five-year extension earlier this offseason, George is looking to capitalize on that productive campaign for an even better year ahead; one that has vastly different expectations for the Jazz as a whole compared to what he's been used to for the past three years.

The Jazz have their most talented roster since George has been in the building, are looking to stack wins on the board rather than maximize their odds in the draft lottery, and for those that are competing on the floor, it sets up for both a refreshing and exciting season ahead.

What Keyonte George Is Looking Forward to This Season

However, when asking George what he's looking forward to most for the Jazz's upcoming season, he had a pretty eye-catching answer that not many would likely assume.

While George did note that he was looking forward to playing with new faces and getting back on the floor entirely, his biggest highlight was the inevitable adversity the Jazz will have to face this season.

"Besides playing with the new guys, I'm just excited to get back out there on the floor; get back out there in front of the fans," George said at media day. "But the main thing is just to see how we, as a group, go through adversity."

"Obviously, throughout my years here, I've hit a lot of adversity, individually and as a group. But now, as a group, we have a common goal. So when we hit little bumps in the road, seeing how we get through that fire together. That's going to be exciting whenever we hit a roadblock; we’ve got to figure it out together."

Jazz G Keyonte George on what he's looking forward to this season:

🗣️ "The main thing is just to see how we, as a group, go through adversity."

"We have a common goal. So when we hit bumps in the road, seeing how we get through that fire together. That's going to be exciting." pic.twitter.com/adWuD9cMJ5
— Utah Jazz On SI (@JazzOnSI) September 30, 2026

This Jazz roster is certainly talented on paper, but that doesn't mean they aren't going to be a group prone to adversity. No team in the NBA is, especially over the course of a long 82-game regular season.

For Utah, their top players around the roster really haven't played together as a unit much at all. George and Jaren Jackson Jr. have just played five minutes on the floor with one another since his trade from the Memphis Grizzlies, and no one around the roster has played in a regular season game alongside No. 2 overall pick Darryn Peterson.

Mar 7, 2026; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Utah Jazz guard Keyonte George (3) brings the ball up the court against Milwaukee Bucks guard Ryan Rollins (13) in the first half at Fiserv Forum. Mandatory Credit: Michael McLoone-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

So there are bound to be adjustment periods and mistakes made throughout the course of the Jazz's first season really gunning for a spot in the postseason since starting their rebuild.

Yet, at the same time, having guys in the building like George welcoming that adversity with open arms is certainly much better than those who reject it.

That seems to be where George is at; someone who's become a better and better leader each season he's been with the Jazz, and has seemingly only seen that role as one of the primary voices in the locker room increase as he approaches a massive fourth year in Salt Lake City.

So when the time comes for the Jazz to fall into a bit of a lull or a losing streak this season, which is going to happen at some point throughout the next seven months, expect George to be among the top guys in the locker room looking to right the ship as simply yet another part of his growing leadership role on this team.

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