Boston Celtics Avoid Season Sweep To Utah Jazz
Dec 30, 2025, 10:38 PM | Updated: Dec 31, 2025, 5:32 pm
Utah Jazz guard Keyonte George (3) defends Boston Celtics guard Payton Pritchard (Credit: Isaac Hale, Deseret News)
(Credit: Isaac Hale, Deseret News)
SALT LAKE CITY – The Utah Jazz fell to the Boston Celtics 129-119, snapping their two-game winning streak to end 2025.
Keyonte George continued his recent brilliant play, leading the Jazz with 37 points, seven assists, and six rebounds, while Jusuf Nurkic added a season-high 26 points of his own.
The Celtics were led by Derrick White, who scored 27 points, while adding seven rebounds, six assists, and seven blocks.
Celtics Slow Jazz In Fourth Quarter
After allowing 96 points through the first three quarters of the game, the Celtics’ defense tightened up against the Jazz’s red-hot offense.
The Jazz had connected on 48 percent of their field goals and 40 percent of their threes over the first 36 minutes, but were limited to just 7-17 shooting and 1-5 from the three-point line in the fourth quarter.
He’s on FIRE 🔥 pic.twitter.com/TYTbH2CFcO
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) December 31, 2025
“We struggled to create the advantage early, and it put us in spots late in the clock where we had to make some tough plays,” Jazz coach Will Hardy said.
The Celtics held the Jazz to just 23 points in the final period, while scoring 30 to win their tenth game in their last 13th outing, led by the veteran White.
“He was good down the stretch, obviously getting to his pull-up, his tre-ball started falling for him a little bit.”
White scored 13 of his 27 points in the final frame to drop the Jazz to 12-20 on the season.
Jusuf Nurkic Improving Jazz’s Spacing
One of the biggest improvements for both Keyonte George and Lauri Markkanen this season has been their efficiency finishing inside the paint.
George has raised his field‑goal percentage inside three feet from 63 percent last season to 75 percent this year, while Markkanen has improved his own mark from 64 to 72 percent.
The Jazz have missed Walker Kessler’s strong rim finishing, but his presence also pulled extra defenders into the paint, creating more traffic for George and Markkanen to navigate.
In his absence, Jusuf Nurkic has provided much-needed spacing through his screens and passing.
“The most unselfish thing you could do is screening,” George said of Nurkic. “He’s done it at a high level for a very long time. So as soon as I seen that we was getting him, I was super excited just knowing that he’s played with high-caliber guards, and he’s gotten them open.”
Will Hardy on how Jusuf Nurkic and Kevin Love affect the offensive spacing for the @utahjazz. #TakeNote pic.twitter.com/8yMBtbs3E6
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) December 31, 2025
Nurkic is shooting only 30 percent on his 1.5 three‑point attempts per game this season, but he has recently surged, hitting 8-11 from downtown over his last six outings.
“In San Antonio, obviously, to start the game, he hit a few and was hot, so it felt different,” Hardy said of Nurkic. “We’re not purposely spacing Nurk as much. I think Nurk gives us a very different look with his screening, his rolling, his ability to impact rebounding. That being said, Nurk will pop some. I wish I could tell you when, but he has the freedom to mix it up.”
nurked it ✅ pic.twitter.com/9yukSzqRZk
— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) December 31, 2025
Kessler opened the year strong before season‑ending labrum surgery in November, posting career‑high averages in points, assists, and three‑point shooting.
Although he has long been a threat to lead the league in field‑goal percentage because of his elite rim finishing, the Jazz have benefited from the spacing Nurkic provides—and they could gain even more if Kessler adopts some of those spacing elements when he returns.
Walt Clayton Jr.’s Huge Dunk
It’s been a good few games for Walt Clayton Jr., who followed up Saturday’s 17-point, five-assist performance in San Antonio with a seven-point outing against the Celtics.
The rookie’s most impressive moment, however, came when he threw down one of the best dunks of the Jazz’s season.
Just past the midway point of the second quarter, Taylor Hendricks corralled a long rebound, igniting a fast break for the Jazz.
With Lauri Markkanen to his right and Clayton Jr. to his left, Hendricks dished the ball to the smaller guard, who rose and detonated the monster jam over the Celtics’ Derrick White.
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Clayton Jr. was known for his hot shooting coming out of Florida, but surprised some at the NBA Draft combine when he recorded a 37-inch vertical leap.
“I ain’t no Walt had that,” George said. “Walt tries to play like he’s a little old, and he’s talking about how he’s getting his legs back, but I’m happy for Walt.”
Next Utah Jazz Broadcast
The Jazz will travel to face the Los Angeles Clippers on Thursday at 8:30 p.m. MST. The game will be televised on KJZZ, streamed on Jazz+, and heard on 97.5 The KSL Sports Zone.
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Ben Anderson is the Utah Jazz insider for KSL Sports and the co-host of Jake and Ben from 10-12p with Jake Scott on 97.5 The KSL Sports Zone. Find Ben on Twitter at @BensHoops, on Instagram @BensHoops, or on BlueSky.
