Jusuf Nurkic Says Keyonte George Reminds Him of 9-Time All-Star

In the midst of the Utah Jazz's third victory of the new season vs. the Boston Celtics, it ended up being a stellar night for Keyonte George, inevitably panning out to be his best performance of the season thus far.

During his 38 total minutes on the floor, George led the Jazz with an impressive 31 points, five rebounds, and four assists, shooting 56.3% from the field, and thus continuing the hot hand he's held through his first seven games of his third-year campaign.

Such a performance from George even landed him some All-Star-level praise from his veteran big man, Jusuf Nurkic, who sees some similarities to nine-time All-Star Damian Lillard in the Jazz guard.

"He's my favorite player so far, literally," Nurkic said after the Jazz's win. "He's reminding me so much of Dame, in a way. Just the way he works, the way he understands the game and the way he wants to be better."

Jusuf Nurkic with some high praise of Keyonte George:

"He's my favorite player so far, literally. He's reminding me so much of Dame, in a way. Just the way he works, the way he understands the game and the way he wants to be better."
— Ryan Miller (@millerjryan) November 4, 2025

Jusuf Nurkic Sees Damian Lillard Qualities in Keyonte George

Nov 3, 2025; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Utah Jazz guard Keyonte George (3) shoots the ball while Boston Celtics guard Payton Pritchard (11) defends during the second half at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images | Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images

Needless to be said, that's a pretty good comparison to have come your way, and when looking at what George has put together through his season so far, it's easy to see why Nurkic sees his future being so bright.

During his seven games in his third season thus far, George has averaged 23.1 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 8.1 assists on 43.7% shooting, playing over 34 minutes a night in the process. Impressive numbers, and nearly career-highs across the board.

But it's not just for how George has broken out onto the scene offensively for Nurkic to see those Lillard qualities within him. The 22-year-old has kept himself busy in the gym all summer leading up to the season to take him to where he's at now, while also taking ahold of a clear role as a leader and notable voice in the locker room for the Jazz's youth movement.

Those are the star qualities anyone covets in their lead point guard of the future. And through the early portions of this season, George has shown those glimpses of being more than capable of shouldering some big responsibilities with this team moving forward, both as an on-ball playmaker and someone who can lift his teammates up when necessary.

Time will tell if George can continue to keep the positive momentum of his development moving forward this season to get even better. But so far through the first two weeks of the year and a 3-4 record to show for it, the Jazz's third-year guard has proven to have found his groove as a key piece of this rebuild moving forward.

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