Keyonte George Explains Utah Jazz's Turnaround After 55-Point Rout

The Utah Jazz put together a quality bounceback win over the Cleveland Cavaliers to start their week on the road, thanks to a 123-112 victory in Rocket Arena, coming less than 48 hours after the team's worst loss in franchise history took place against the Charlotte Hornets, where they were routed by a whopping 55 points.

That turnaround was in large part due to the standout play from third-year guard Keyonte George, who continued his Most Improved Player campaign with another 30-plus point outing. He finished with a team-high 32 along with five rebounds and nine assists, shooting 50-50-100 splits in the process.

The victory on the road made for a 180-degree shift for George and the Jazz in Cleveland compared to their previous outing against the Hornets. Against Charlotte, the third-year guard had just four points on 2-9 shooting from the field, and had a brutal -38 plus-minus to join it, and really made for one of his worst performances of the year.

Yet, fast forward to the first of a five-game road trip, and the story was much different, piecing together for a win that George keyed in on a mindset around flushing the bad moments of the last game and being better for the next one.

"In this league, the best thing about it is you get another opportunity in the next day or two days after, so we kind of have to wash [the loss vs. Charlotte]," George said in an interview with ESPN's Malika Andrews.

"But having that group out there, we just have to understand that we had to compete. We knew that Cleveland team, they were really good on the other end, and so for us, we just had to play great ball for 48 minutes. That's when we did last night."

"For us, we just have to play great ball for 48 minutes and that's what we did last night."

Utah Jazz forward Keyonte George shares with @malika_andrews how the Jazz were able to beat the Cavaliers after a huge loss to the Hornets ✍️ pic.twitter.com/XrZLnWatsR
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) January 13, 2026

Keyonte George Keeping Steady Mindset in Year 3

That mindset turned out to work well in George's favor to make for what's now his 10th 30-point game of this season, and tok down a familiar face in former Jazz All-Star Donovan Mitchell in the midst of it.

With that continued success and a refined sense of consistency that's made George into a nightly 25-point threat in the backcourt, even against tough competition, might even be giving him a few looks at landing an All-Star appearance as early as his third year in the league, and especially so if similar breakout offensive nights continue to find their way onto the board.

Jan 10, 2026; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Utah Jazz guard Keyonte George (3) makes a quick pass around Charlotte Hornets forward Brandon Miller (24) during the first half at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Peter Creveling-Imagn Images | Peter Creveling-Imagn Images

It's just the start of what's setting up to be a long and successful career for the Jazz guard who's only 22 years old, emerging as one of the top scoring guards in the Western Conference, and keeping an even-keeled mental attitude through it all.

Be sure to bookmark Utah Jazz On SI and follow @JazzOnSI on X to stay up-to-date on daily Utah Jazz news, interviews, breakdowns and more!