Utah Jazz Winners and Losers From Home Opener Win vs. Pelicans

The Utah Jazz managed to secure their first win of the new season on Friday night in what would be a clutch victory at home against the New Orleans Pelicans, 120-119.

And in the Jazz's first home victory (hopefully of many) for this season, there were a select few names within Utah's rotation who stepped up to the occasion a bit more than the rest. At the same time, there were a couple of others on Utah's side who might've not had things go their way quite as initially expected.

With that in mind, let's dive into a couple of winners and losers from the Jazz's side of things within their Friday night victory over the Pelicans in the Delta Center.

Winner: Jaren Jackson Jr.

Oct 23, 2026; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Utah Jazz forward Jaren Jackson Jr. (20) speaks to the media as the player of the game against the New Orleans Pelicans at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

A major bounce-back game it was for the Jazz big man, who made his presence felt on both sides of the ball en route to easily his best game since arriving in Utah this past February.

Not only did Jackson Jr. lead the Jazz in total scoring with 24 points, but he also silenced the doubters who questioned his rebounding and ability to stay out of foul trouble.

He answered the bell as Utah's starting center with 10 rebounds, and only racked up four personal fouls en route to a performance that proved exactly why the front office wanted to initially trade for him. With more games like this, more wins are also bound to keep racking up.

Loser: Ace Bailey

Oct 23, 2026; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; New Orleans Pelicans guard Jordan Poole (3) drives with the ball against Utah Jazz guard Ace Bailey (19) during the first half at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Ace Bailey began this game off on a high note. He was moved into the Jazz's starting lineup after initially coming off the bench in the season opener, and that seemed to hint at a sign of things to come for this starting five moving forward.

However, it wouldn't take long for Bailey to phase out of the Jazz's five-man lineup down the stretch of this game. He finished with six points on 2-8 shooting with seven rebounds and two assists.

Overall, not too bad. But it did lead to Bailey ending this game watching from the sidelines as Jaxson Hayes simply took things over in the frontcourt––to the point where Hayes might've just played his way back into the starting five for next game, while Bailey reverts back to his role as sixth man.

Winner: Jaxson Hayes

Oct 23, 2026; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Utah Jazz center Jaxson Hayes (11) reacts to a play against the New Orleans Pelicans during the first half at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Hayes dispelled all of the chatter that surrounded him being a reliable rotational center for the Jazz in this game. He was completely electric coming off the bench.

Where Hayes really stood out was his ability to be a rim finisher and a lob threat. He finished with 17 points off the bench with 7-8 shooting, pairing that with a solid five rebounds and game-high +9 plus-minus.

The only part of the night in which you could consider Hayes a "loser" was when he got called for a questionable technical foul for "hanging on the rim" for too long in the fourth quarter. But if that's the only blip on the radar for Hayes, that makes up for a pretty successful performance.

Jaxon Hayes was given a tech for this dunk... why?#NBA #Pelicans #Jazz #TakeNote pic.twitter.com/rWZvBVD7hR
— Dom (@ZeroChillSports) October 24, 2026

Loser: Kyle Filipowski

Mar 28, 2026; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Utah Jazz forward Kyle Filipowski (22) against the Phoenix Suns at Mortgage Matchup Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

It still seems as if Filipowski is working his way back from the back surgery he recovered from this offseason, as he only saw eight minutes of game time, finishing with zero points, one rebound, and a steal.

This game marks back-to-back showings for Filipowski where he was limited to less than 10 points on the night. And in games where Utah is due to be without some size in Jusuf Nurkic's extended absence, not being able to stand out for a big performance tends to be a missed opportunity.

The hope is that Filipowski can gain more traction within the rotation in the coming days before Nurkic makes his inevitable return. Because if he doesn't turn things around quickly, it might not take too long for both Hayes and Nurkic to eat into some of his minutes within the frontcourt.

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