Utah Jazz vs Orlando Magic Preview: Polar opposites collide

Deck the halls — the December 2025 Jazz are worth commemorating.

Summarized by AI ⓘ

What is the story about?

The Jazz (10-16) homestand caps off with the Magic (15-12) hobble into town with five players listed on their injury report. Utah’s still riding off the high from their close 143-135 loss with the LA Lakers in the same building, and now they can take on the world. That’s right, the Jazz are cool enough to sit at the cool kids’ table with their cool double-digit win total and cool uniforms. The point is, they’re still pretty darn good even if you subtract Lauri, Kessler, and dare I say, Georges Niang

from the equation. Though when you’re haunted by a Derrick Favors salary dump from four years ago, it’s hard for most to grin from ear to ear. But don’t cry, little Jazz fan, Uncle Ryan Smith’s got enough Keyonte George praise to feed you your entire life.

With Lauri doubtful tonight with right groin injury management, you better bet your buck Keyonte is going to be the go-to guy today. Maybe, just maybe, another solid performance will get someone to talk about Keyonte, according to the Real App.

You dont’t even have to point out the last few games. Heck, look at the entire season. He averages more points than Anthony Edwards, more assists than Shai and more three-pointers than LaVine or Austin Reaves (the turnovers do not need to be discussed as of this moment. Though he’s granted a seat on the council, he’s likely not going to be granted the rank of All-Star or Most Improved Player — no matter how much arguing you do, the media has its grip on Austin Reaves and Jalen Johnson. Of course, we know he’s legit, but he’s another elite performance or two away from being a headline. The Magic are dealing with multiple injuries, including perimeter defender Jaleb Suggs doubtful and Jonathan Isaac questionable with hip issues. Their top-tier defense is a little more thinned out, though they’re still going to be attacking Keyonte with everything they’ve got. This is one of those nights. The kind where players announce themselves. Where “hey, that guy’s pretty cool” in the NBA sphere becomes “wait, hold on, let’s have a conversation about this guy”. Where Keyonte and the Jazz must stay consistent to their skillset and not get played off the floor early.

The Magic are coming off a 126-115 loss to the division rival Denver Nuggets — Paolo Banchero recorded his third career triple-double, but Denver shot 44% from deep behind Jamal Murray’s seven triples and 32 points. Orlando has had quite a bit of their own kerfuffle in their 2026 campaign. Their 15-12 record has them sitting sixth in the Eastern Conference, and they have won 5 of their last 10 games, the latest three games coming without primary scoring option Franz Wagner. They heavily rely on a defensive skillset, and it’s turned into the team’s identity. Since November 10, the Magic have returned to those origins after a subpar 4-6 start. With a defensive rating of 109.6, they are ranked second in the league. Orlando excels in making you turn it over throughout transitions. They rank third in the league in that category. It’s a bad matchup for a team that’s on pace to record the highest amount of turnovers in the league for a third consecutive season. Because of these frequent turnovers, the Jazz often rank as the league’s worst at defending against transition points, allowing opponents to easily score 20.3 points off live-ball miscues. Orlando has the third-best defensive rebounding percentage, preventing their opponents from scoring off second-chance opportunities. Only OKC ranks higher than them for the lowest opponent second-chance points at 12.2 a game.

The kerfuffle comes from the never-ending Franz/Paolo debate. The league has seen a fair sample size of how the two operate. Franz will miss his fourth consecutive game with a high left ankle sprain, meaning Paolo will have to lead their charge once again. Paolo’s numbers have taken a bit of a dip lately, and it’s a tough watch if you’re pulling for him. He’s struggling to find his rhythm from deep, hitting just 26.6% of his threes, a pretty noticeable drop from the 32.0% he was knocking down last year. That shooting slump is also showing up on the scoreboard, with his scoring average dropping to 20.5 points compared to the 25.9 he was averaging the previous season. Though the Jazz are likely going to miss Lauri, leaving a frontcourt of Filipowski and Nurkic for Paolo to bully in the post. Utah’s allowed 52.0 points in the paint, a mark that ranks 10th most in the NBA. Banchero could overpower smaller switches or finish through contact with ease. You’re not going to put Paolo to a complete halt, but don’t let him dictate the game. If Utah stays disciplined and doesn’t overreact to his drives, they can turn him into a volume shooter, which, based on his percentage mark from deep, is exactly what the Jazz could exploit.