Utah Jazz see some doors close, others open with Jackson Jr. injury
Oct 27, 2026, 3:27 PM
Utah Jazz guard Darryn Peterson (22) holds his arm up when he is introduced by the announcer during a preseason game against the Denver Nuggets at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2026. (Photo courtesy of Lukas Katilius, Deseret News)
(Photo courtesy of Lukas Katilius, Deseret News)
SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Jazz were hit with some unfortunate news on Tuesday, as it was revealed that star forward Jaren Jackson Jr. would miss at least six weeks of action with a torn MCL in his right knee.
Even though that update was paired with the relatively good news that Lauri Markkanen avoided serious injury and is listed as day-to-day, Utah’s short-term plans have been shaken up.
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Injury Timeline
Markkanen’s day-to-day designation could see him back on the court as soon as tomorrow against the San Antonio Spurs, but more comfortably sometime in the week or so.
Jackson will miss a more significant chunk of time, and the six-week reevaluation mark lands about a week into December. On the low end, he’ll miss about 20 games. On the high end, he’ll miss 25 or more.
RELATED: Utah Jazz provide injury updates on Lauri Markkanen, Jaren Jackson Jr.
A small silver lining to that fact comes with Jusuf Nurkic. Utah’s big man sustained a partial plantar plate tear of the second toe of his right foot on October 4. On October 7, the Jazz said the center will be re-evaluated in four weeks, around November 4.
Assuming Nurkic will be ready to go then, Utah will get another big body back that is capable of filling at least some of the gap left by JJJ.
But there is another hidden positive that could show itself in the coming weeks.
DP, Ace, and Key are picking up the offensive slack left by JJJ and Lauri.
Love to see that from those three.
— Chandler Holt (@CHoltSports) October 27, 2026
“Next Man Up” Brings Increased Opportunity
The Jazz see opportunity for growth in Jackson’s absence. And their vision isn’t hard to make out.
Ace Bailey has been a major positive for Utah early in the season. He was moved into the starting lineup after game one, and will now have the chance to stick there alongside Markkanen and one of Nurkic or Jaxson Hayes in the frontcourt.
Darryn Peterson has shown great flashes, especially on the defensive end. But one of the main knocks through four games was his timid nature on offense, which is understandable considering he was often sharing the court with two All-Stars, a rising star in Keyonte George, and another quality scorer in Bailey.
But with Jackson out, there will be an extra 13 shots a night, if not more, to be dispersed among the rotation players.
JJJ is also probably the best individual creator in the frontcourt, so that gives more on-ball opportunities to George, Peterson, and Bailey.
handle ✅ step back ✅ score it ✅
#TakeNote https://t.co/5P9B4azs1E
— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) October 27, 2026
Now, don’t misconstrue this as saying, “The Jazz will be a better team without Jaren Jackson Jr.” They won’t. Wins are going to be much tougher to come by.
But increased opportunity for the young core early in the season could pay dividends down the road.
