Jazz HC Will Hardy Gets Candid on Keyonte George's Year 3 Breakout

The Utah Jazz, through three games of the new season, have seen some extremely positive things from third-year guard Keyonte George.

In the midst of the Jazz's 2-1 record, it's been George, along with the frontcourt duo of Lauri Markkanen and Walker Kessler, to be a catalyst in Utah's surge to a strong start–– the guard has averaged 20.0 points, 3.0 rebounds, and 9.7 assists, staking his claim as their starting point guard for the foreseeable future.

Jazz head coach Will Hardy spoke about the guard's start of the season following their latest win over the Phoenix Suns, where he credited George's breakout to being a bit more comfortable with his surroundings.

"I just see somebody who is very comfortable with his surroundings," Hardy said of George." I think he's very comfortable with everybody in our organization. You know, everybody sees kind of the interaction between the players and then the players and me during the games, but what you don't see is the way that the guys interact with all of the support staff, all of the medical staff.  I think the way that Keyonte carries himself now, just shows me that he has a lot of trust in all the people here."

Will Hardy Says Keyonte George Has Gotten "Comfortable"

Oct 24, 2025; Sacramento, California, USA; Utah Jazz head coach Will Hardy calls out from the sideline during the third quarter against the Sacramento Kings at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-Imagn Images | Kelley L Cox-Imagn Images

The process to George's breakout start to the year seemingly began dating back to this offseason, where the 22-year-old would remain in Salt Lake City for a considerable portion of the summer, managed to get better adjusted to his surroundings ahead of a big season.

Now, it's already proven to pay major dividends.

"He stayed in Utah the summer. He just seems like somebody who was really settled in, and he's sort of given himself to the group," Hardy continued. " And I think that's hard for anybody to do. I mean, it's hard for me to do. You have to really trust all the people around you, and I think he's gained so much respect from all of his teammates because of his work ethic."

Along with getting established with his surroundings both in the city and with the organization, George has gotten some consistent and insightful guidance from Hardy and the Jazz coaching staff throughout–– which has proven to lead to a better sense of defensive ability from George, improvement as a playmaker in the early motions of this season.

Keyonte George vs Suns:

26 PTS
5 REB
10 AST

The first 25p/10a game of his career. pic.twitter.com/lTfU2PCbeM
— StatMuse (@statmuse) October 28, 2025

And it's safe to say that Hardy, who's been along the way for his development since entering the league two summers ago, is proud of what he's seen thus far.

He's taken a lot of hard coaching. We've had a lot of very honest conversations. Um...  I'll probably say it 100 more times this year, but I'm really proud of that kid. And I think the plays he made down the stretch, when we seem to have nothing going, and you saw the burst, you saw the physicality, you saw somebody who wasn't baiting for fouls, you saw somebody who was really just going to win. "

It's early, but the signs are there for a massive year on the horizon for Keyonte George.

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