It’s hard to think that there was a time in the past calendar year where Keyonte George was replaced by Isaiah Collier in the Utah Jazz starting lineup, but last January, in the midst of a four-game losing streak, Jazz head coach Will Hardy did exactly that.
For most of the second half of the season, George came off the bench, and the jury had all but decided his fate as a backup point guard in the NBA — not starting floor general for a successful team.
Less than a year later, he has gone from the
bench of the worst team in the NBA to a legitimate all-star candidate, and has made the Jazz’s rebuild much more enticing.
In the past two games against the Pistons and Spurs, two of the top three teams in the NBA’s standings, George averaged 29.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 7.0 assists and shot over 40% from deep in back-to-back wins.
Stat lines like these have become a common occurrence for the third-year guard from Baylor, and whether he’s going up against Cade Cunningham or Stephon Castle like in the last two victories, he’s been able to hold his own — and even outperform — against some of the best backcourt members the NBA has to offer.
Who is Keyonte George’s competition for an all-star nod?
This year’s all-star selection format is positionless, meaning that if the 12 best candidates in the Western conference are guards, those 12 players will be selected, regardless of position. George isn’t just competing against other backcourt players, he’s competing against everyone.
Let’s take a look at the locks to make the team.
Locks:
- Nikola Jokic
- Anthony Edwards
- Luka Doncic
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
- Stephen Curry
- Victor Wembanyama
- Alpren Sengun
- Kevin Durant
- Austin Reaves
George won’t get in over any of these players, and he shouldn’t. Nine locks is not a great sign, but who said making an all-star team was easy?
Maybe Wembanyama will be punished for missing 12 games, but I highly doubt it.
That means George will be competing against these players for one of the last spots in the west:
- Lauri Markkanen – 27.9 ppg, 6.9 rpg, 2.1 apg
- Devin Booker – 25.4 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 6.5 apg
- Kawhi Leonard – 27.5 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 3.4 apg
- James Harden – 26.3 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 8.0 apg
- Deni Avdija – 25.5 ppg, 7.1 rpg, 6.8 apg
- Jamal Murray – 25.4 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 6.8 apg
- Chet Holmgren – 18.3 ppg, 7.9 rpg, 1.6 apg
- LeBron James – 20.5 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 6.7 apg
- Julius Randle – 22.6 ppg, 7.0 rpg, 5.7 apg
That’s nine players who all have just as good, if not a better case than George to make the final cut. The list doesn’t even include names like De’Aaron Fox and Anthony Davis.
Excluding George, there’s probably 15 players that would be a shock if they were not selected as an all-star. Needless to say, it’s an uphill battle for the Jazz’s new star, simply because of the conference that he plays in.
The case for Keyonte George
Set aside making an argument for George to make it over other players, let’s just take a moment to give him his much deserved flowers.
George is averaging an impressive 24.2 ppg (No. 14 in the west), 4.2 rpg and 6.8 apg (No. 9 in the west), and has eight 30-point games.
And it’s not the case of “good stats, bad team.” When George scores 30 points, the Jazz are 6-2, with the most notable victory coming over Detroit. Against the Pistons on Dec. 26, he scored 30 points, snagged seven rebounds and dished out eight assists. He also scored the game-winner with 2.1 seconds left in the game.
The most notable improvement for George in 2025-26 has been his efficiency. In his first two seasons, George shot below 40% from the field, below 40% on 2-point attempts and below 35% from 3-point range.
Now, scoring nearly 25 points per game — a 7.4-point increase from last season — he is shooting 6% better from the field, 6% better from 2-point attempts and 2% better from deep.
But most importantly, George has been the best player on the court on any given night, which is impressive considering that he might not even be better than his own teammate Lauri Markkanen. Against the Pistons — I’ve beat this game to death, but it was a pivotal moment in the season and in his career — he was on par with Cade Cunningham, a No. 1 pick who might be a top-10 player in the league.
So George might not be an all-star this season, because of the Jazz’s 12-19 record and a crowded conference, but the fact that this is even a conversation worth having is a victory in itself.
