Jazz Mailbag: Who Will Be Team’s Most Improved Player?

SALT LAKE CITY – Welcome to the Utah Jazz mailbag where this week we look at which player on the roster will be most improved from last season.

Each week we will send out a prompt on X asking for the questions you have about the Jazz.

Then, we’ll respond to as many as we can in that week’s mailbag.

Mailbag: Which Jazz Player Will See Most Improvement?

If you were to guess which Jazz player enters this year “most improved” from the summer (we can count rookies improving from summer league/college), who would it be?

— Cade Cottrell (@CadeCottrell) September 24, 2024

Question: If you were to guess which Jazz player enters this year “most improved” from the summer (we can count rookies improving from summer league/college), who would it be?

Answer: Considering the growth most players make between their first year and second year in the league, Keyonte George, Taylor Hendricks, and Brice Sensabaugh should be the odds-on favorites to take home this award.

George shot very poorly at the Salt Lake City Summer League, and still averaged 30.5 points per game, 11.5 more than the next-best scorer at the tournament.

Hendricks will likely see the biggest increase in opportunity after rarely seeing the floor during the first half of his rookie season, while Sensabaugh’s Summer League left much to be desired after a finger injury sidelined him after just two and a half games.

step 👆
knock 👇#TakeNote | @tayxhendricks pic.twitter.com/t4H98DCUsm

— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) July 17, 2024

Each of the three players will have to prove they can knock down shots consistently, something Hendricks did better than his rookie counterparts, and eliminate mistakes that were far too frequent for all three last year.

Among this year’s rookies, Isaiah Collier has the most room to improve after a difficult showing in Las Vegas.

Collier was the best rookie in Salt Lake City, and benefited from playing alongside George and Walker Kessler, and may see his game pop when playing next to more proven NBA players on a night-to-night basis.

However, the growth he’d have to show to earn regular minutes might stack the odds against him.

Walker Kessler may have the best path to move from a reserve to a full-time starter if the Jazz opt to see what they have in the third-year center over veteran John Collins.

🚨 𝘽𝙡𝙤𝙘𝙠𝙚𝙧 𝙆𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙡𝙚𝙧 sighting 🚨#TakeNote pic.twitter.com/a685dqD6ZI

— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) July 9, 2024

After an early season injury, Kessler never returned to his starting role while Collins manned the job adequately.

However, if the Jazz prioritize Kessler’s development over the steady, but replacement-level production of Collins, he could see a sharp increase in production.

Now, with the young core out of the way, my bet for the Jazz’s most improved player is Jordan Clarkson.

Despite averaging a personal-best 5.0 assists per game, Clarkson had an oddly off-year shooting just 41 percent from the floor and 29 percent from three, both far below his career averages.

Part of that was his changing role, moving from a full-time starter in 2022-23 to a reserve role last season, and the burden of shouldering too much responsibility as a shot-creator on a young roster.

I suspect the Jazz will have a more defined role for Clarkson to open the season, which should allow him to rebound from last year’s difficulties.

Any chance the UHC being at the Delta Center helps improve the Jazz in-arena entertainment?

— JazzNation (@JazzNationNews) September 24, 2024

Question: Any chance the UHC being at the Delta Center helps improve the Jazz in-arena entertainment?

Answer: Remember in “Toy Story” when Andy gets the Buzz Lightyear action figure for his birthday and begins to neglect Woody.

The wallpaper and posters change in Andy’s room to reflect his infatuation for the space ranger, much to the chagrin of the drawstring cowboy, only to later learn that there’s plenty of room for both him and Buzz in the boy’s heart.

The Jazz are Woody, and the Utah Hockey Club is Buzz Lightyear.

I think over the next few years, the NHL is going to be the shiny new toy in the Delta Center which will give them some preference over the Jazz.

The arena is going to undergo a radical facelift to make the NHL more consumable.

The Hockey Club is likely going to win at a higher rate which might give it some preference regarding branding in and around the building.

The @utahjazz note statue at the Delta Center has been removed, but will return with an additional @utahhockeyclub installation before the regular season opens!#takenote https://t.co/LzzaniR9gr pic.twitter.com/sIDlerD9dl

— KSL Sports (@kslsports) September 12, 2024

And, due to the uniquely short timeframe to launch the franchise, don’t be surprised if an unequal share of resources within the Smith Entertainment Group are allocated to hockey as it finds its footing in Utah.

Those issues may leave Jazz fans feeling like they are buried at the bottom of the toy box.

But I wouldn’t bet on it being permanent.

With the new construction set to hit the Delta Center beginning next summer, I’ve been told improving the in-arena basketball experience will be a priority, and the team won’t be ignoring one sport in favor of the other.

However, as a multi-purpose arena, there will always have to be some compromise between the two sports to find a happy medium that supports both teams.

Ultimately, I would expect to see a significant improvement to the building to support hockey, and a moderate overhaul when it comes to basketball, but both fanbases will be well-loved, just like Woody and Buzz.

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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 or on Instagram @BensHoops.

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