Jazz Have No Plans to Sit Keyonte George: ‘He Wants to Be Out There'

Keyonte George proved during his Monday night game vs. the Minnesota Timberwolves that his first Summer League performance in Vegas was not a fluke. He put up a new stat line consisting of 26 points, seven assists, and three rebounds on the way to a 108-96 win for the Utah Jazz.

With expectations already being exceeded for George this early into Summer League, it has led to questions concerning his availability moving forward in Vegas. Sometimes, players are seen as too good in the eyes of fans to play with the other young guys in these games, calling to rest them for the more significant regular season ahead.

The Jazz are 2-0 in Vegas, beating the Timberwolves, 102-93.

🎵 Keyonte George: 26 pts, 3 reb, 7 ast,
9-15 FG, 5-10 3PT

🎵 Johnny Juzang: 26 pts, 4 reb, 3 ast,
10-14 FG, 4-5 3PT

Lots to love tonight from the guys. May be looking at a Summer League chip in SLC soon…#TakeNote pic.twitter.com/REInBH2pAk
— Utah Jazz On SI (@JazzOnSI) July 11, 2023

It is a valid question, given that we have recently seen players like San Antonio Spurs C Victor Wembanyama play two games before calling it a wrap in Vegas. Even guys like Houston Rockets G Amen Thompson have already suffered injury in just one game played. It be a cautionary tale on how to deal with George moving forward, hoping to prevent any unexpected injuries.

At this point,iIt looks like George is not quite finished with his inspiring campaign just yet. Jazz Summer League head coach, Evan Bradds shared his thoughts on the idea of resting Keyonte, along with how he sees his playing time looking moving forward:

“I think everyone likes what they see, right?” Bradds said, "But, I think they want to keep seeing it...He gets better every game. He keeps getting a little bit better. I think we want to take that also day by day and see what happens. I think if you even asked him he’s going to be like, ‘Nah, I’m going to keep playing.’ Right? He wants to be out there. You see the joy he has when he plays, so I don’t think you’re going to get him to say he doesn’t want to play."

With the momentum and confidence George has had up to this point, deciding to cut that short to rest him as a safety measure may not be the best course of action. He has an abundantly clear hot hand that’s putting the league on notice, and the coaching staff seems like they want to see exactly how far that can go.

Sure, there is always some underlying injury risk involved by playing guys in Summer League and preseason, but that concern will always be there. Playing in Vegas is still an amazing time to get an early look at these young prospects to develop and enhance them off the bat in their careers.

There is still a ton that George can show off with his game, and aspects he can improve upon as well. That is exactly what Summer League is for, and Keyonte has and will look to continue doing a stellar job up to this point showing his value for the Jazz going forward.

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