The 2024-25 Utah Jazz’s Season Preview

September 2nd, 2024

by Alan Lu

After having a pleasantly surprising 2022-23 season, the Utah Jazz’s positive momentum was halted last season, as they went 31-51 and missed both the play-in tournament and the playoffs. They have one-time NBA All-Star Lauri Markkanen, who’s been an offensive force for them, but the Utah Jazz finished as the worst defensive team in the league as they were 30th in team defensive rating (120.4), and their inability to defend on a nightly basis contributed to them having a losing season.

This year, they added talented rookies in Cody Williams, Kyle Filipowski, and Isaiah Collier, but they didn’t seem to make impactful additions elsewhere, so their relatively quiet summer may suggest that they will continue their trend of finishing towards the bottom of the Western Conference standings. Still, there’s a chance that the Utah Jazz could outplay and outperform expectations like they did in 2023, so if that’s the case, then there may be an outside chance that this team could reach the play-in tournament in 2025, especially if Lauri Markkanen and company stays healthy this season.

Star Players:

Utah Jazz’s seven foot tall, one-time NBA All-Star Lauri Markkanen missed some time due to injuries last year, but he is a very skilled, sharpshooting big man that is one of the most underrated players in the NBA. (Photo: Jeffrey D. Allred/Deseret News)

F Lauri Markkanen

Markkanen is a very skilled, seven-foot tall, one-time All-Star forward that had his best season in 2023 with the Utah Jazz. He’s a gifted, smooth three-level scorer that can make shots from anywhere on the floor, and he will team up with Walker Kessler and John Collins to create a solid frontcourt for them this season.

Additions:

F Cody Williams, C Kyle Filipowski, G Isaiah Collier, G-F Svi Mykhailiuk, C Oscar Tshiebwe

The Jazz were able to add a slew of talented rookies through the 2024 draft, as well as 2024 NBA champion Svi Mykhailiuk, who played for the Boston Celtics. Tshiebwe played sparingly for Indiana as a rookie, but he was a college great that will provide some interior play and tremendous rebounding skills when he is on the floor.

Subtractions:

C Omer Yurtseven, G Kira Lewis Jr., F-C Kenneth Lofton Jr.

The three of them were young, end of the bench players on last year’s team, so their impact was minimal at best. Yurtseven was a member of the Miami Heat playoff teams previously, Kira Lewis Jr. was once a lottery pick, and Kenneth Lofton once scored 42 points in an NBA regular season game. But neither of them were able to accumulate a thousand minutes last season.

Rookies:

F Cody Williams, C Kyle Filipowski, G Isaiah Collier

Cody Williams is an athletic, wiry forward that projects to be a two-way wing in the NBA. He is a rangy defender that can guard multiple positions, is a solid driver that has a promising jump shot, but has been injury prone and didn’t shoot too well in the Summer League. Filipowski is an energetic, mobile big man that is a skilled offensive player, is a solid playmaking big, and can rebound the basketball, but may not do anything at an outstanding level. Isaiah Collier is a big, athletic combo guard that can run the point, and he’s an athletic playmaker that excels as a downhill driver, but will need to improve his jump shot.

Expected Rotation:

John Collins had a solid bounce back season for Utah, and he is a skilled big man that will help strengthen the Jazz’s frontcourt once again for the upcoming season. (Photo: Melissa Majchrzak/NBAE via Getty Images, via Bleacher Report)

The Jazz have an interesting group of players. They have some talent, as they boast having a solid frontcourt along with a group of combo guards that can put the ball in the hoop, but their team will need to improve drastically on the defensive side of the ball, as they were startlingly bad on defense despite having one of the league’s best shot blockers in Walker Kessler.

Projected Starting Lineup:

C Walker Kessler

F John Collins

F Lauri Markkanen

G Jordan Clarkson

G Collin Sexton

Key Bench Players:

Keyonte George had a fairly solid rookie season, and he is an athletic playmaker that can score in bunches, and he has a bright future ahead of him. (Photo: Deseret News, via KSL Sports)

G Keyonte George

F Taylor Hendricks

C Drew Eubanks

F Cody Williams

F-C Kyle Filipowski

The Rest of the Roster:

G-F Johnny Juzang

G-F Svi Mykhailiuk

G Patty Mills

G Isaiah Collier

F Brice Sensabaugh

C Oscar Tshiebwe (Two-Way)

F-C Micah Potter (Two-Way)

G Jason Preston (Two-Way)

Others in Camp:

F Babacar Sané (Exhibit 10)

Team Options at the End of the 2025 Season:

Here I will project the likelihood of the Toronto Raptors to pick up and accept or decline the team options for various players at the end of the 2025 season.

Walker Kessler – Team Option Will Likely Be Accepted (100% Certainty)
Keyonte George – Team Option Will Likely Be Accepted (100% Certainty)
Taylor Hendricks – Team Option Will Likely Be Accepted (100% Certainty)
Brice Sensabaugh – 50/50, Leaning Towards It Will Be Accepted (50% Certainty)

Head Coach:

Will Hardy had a solid rookie season as the head coach of the Utah Jazz, and after having an up-and-down sophomore season, he will look to build off of those seasons to lead Utah this season.
(Photo: Ron Jenkins/Getty Images, via SB Nation’s SLC Dunk)

Will Hardy
2023-24 (UTA): 31-51, missed the playoffs
Coaching Career: 68-96, 0-0 in the NBA Playoffs

After he had a good rookie season in 2023 as he helped build a high-powered offense, the Jazz had a down 2024 season in which they struggled mightily on the defensive end, and the Jazz will need to regroup if they have higher aspirations for the upcoming season.

NBA Head Coach Rank: 24

Outlook:

Lauri Markkanen (in the middle, wearing #23) and Walker Kessler (far left) will lead the Utah Jazz into the 2024-25 NBA season. (Photo: Alex Goodlett/Getty Images, via SB Nation’s SLC Dunk)

They will be a competitive team, but they may not have enough high-end talent to earn a playoff spot in the West. As the West has been getting increasingly competitive, Utah will probably find themselves on the outside looking in, as a competitive team that winds up missing the playoffs and right back in the lottery, with the likelihood that their young players will continue to grow and get better for future seasons.

Projected 2024-25 Finish:
Expected Win-Loss Record: 31-51
Projected Regular Season Finish: 14th in the Western Conference
Expected Playoff Finish: Projected to miss the playoffs
Preseason NBA Power Ranking: 24

I went to Basketball-Reference and SalarySwish to look up some information for this write-up. It will be an exciting basketball season this year, and I’m looking forward to seeing the in-season tournament to see how that will unfold. Anyways, that is my write-up on my preview of the 2024-25 Utah Jazz. Thanks for reading.