Utah Jazz's Will Hardy Sums Up Walter Clayton's Start in One Word

The Utah Jazz have begun to see a bit more upside out of their rookie guard Walter Clayton Jr. in the past week of the season.

Clayton Jr., the Jazz's 18th-overall pick in the draft from this past summer, has increasingly begun to navigate his way into a nice role within Utah's guard rotation, showing nice flashes as a scorer and creator for others, while, of course, having some rookie ups and downs as most every year one player does.

In 19 games, Clayton Jr. is averaging 6.8 points, 2.2 rebounds, and 3.7 assists, shooting 43.3% from the field in just over 17 minutes a game. He also comes fresh off a career-best performance against the OKC Thunder, posting 20 points and nine assists in just under 30 minutes, despite a blowout loss.

It's a start to the year that Jazz head coach Will Hardy has described to both Clayton and others as one where he's been a bit "careful"; being increasingly productive and improving throughout, but also having moments of playing too passive.

"I think he's been pretty careful for the first part of the season," Hardy said of Walter Clayton Jr.

Will Hardy Says Walter Clayton Jr. Has Played "Careful"

Dec 4, 2025; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Utah Jazz guard Walter Clayton Jr. (13) moves the ball past Brooklyn Nets guard Tyrese Martin (13) during the fourth quarter at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Tom Horak-Imagn Images | Tom Horak-Imagn Images

For Hardy, it's easy to break down. Clayton Jr., a typically score-first guard throughout his entire time playing the sport, is now having to transition to a brand new role within an NBA offense, which is bound to have an adjustment period that takes place throughout.

Being careful could be much worse. Seeing a guard try to limit mistakes and make the right decisions is ideally a good trait to see. But that comes with a balance of still needing to be aggressive and looking for your own shot.

He's certainly had some productive flashes, as shown through his latest night against OKC, but there's still a ton of room to get even better and more consistent.

"Walt has been a score-first guard for most of his life, so it's hard, when you're a young guard, and you come in, and you're trying to walk this line of, 'oh, I've got to get the other guys involved, and I got to pass to Lauri [Markkanen] when he's open, and I've gotta do all these things, but my identity is, I come off ball screens, I look at the basket, and I'm open, I shoot," Hardy continued.

"I think he's done a better job of balancing those two things. I feel like early in the year, he was only thinking about everyone else, and so all of his shots were kind of afterthoughts. But it's a hard balance. I anticipate that there will be moments where I could go the other way. Like, well, you're shooting too much. but we just have to try to help him navigate those things."

For young guards entering the league, it can be a challenge to make that transition from college to the pros, especially when in a role like Clayton's as a second-string guard who's not the focal point of an offense like he was at Florida.

But gradually, as the reps continue and the development keeps progressing, Clayton can continue to find his place as the high-end guard he was drafted to be. Just like the Jazz's rebuild, though, it might be a process that requires a bit of extra patience.

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