18 projected wins and only two nationally televised games are not two numbers that scream must-see basketball. Unfortunately for the Jazz, who only won a franchise worst 17 games last season, those two numbers are the tragic reality.
From a national fan’s perspective, the Jazz don’t draw enough excitement to turn on the TV. A big three of Lauri Markkanen, Walker Kessler and whichever young and upcoming player you want to throw into that third slot pale in comparison to other games and shows on television.
Seeing if Eleven and the gang can defeat Vecna in season five of “Stranger Things” might be more enticing than “Ice” Brice Sensabaugh.
For diehard Jazz fans, while not watching your favorite team is a sin to most, sometimes coming home from a tedious 9-5 only to see if Cody Williams will score double digits in a loss to the Sacramento Kings is the last thing you want to do.
So what is the draw to watch the Utah Jazz in the 2025-26 season? Here are four reasons why you — Jazz fan or not — should watch Will Hardy’s squad:
1. Two of the most exciting rookies in the NBA
Ace Bailey’s NBA Draft saga was one of the biggest stories in the NBA this offseason. Once touted as a sure-fire top-three pick, Rutgers’ 2025 struggles and Bailey’s refusal to workout with the top teams selecting in the draft saw him slide to pick No. 5, where the Jazz couldn’t let him fall any further.
Whether you believe in him or not, Bailey is incredibly captivating and is already the most popular player on the Jazz, even without playing an official NBA game. In high school, if it were not for generational American prospect Cooper Flagg, Bailey would have been the No. 1 player in the 2024 class, and teaming up with fellow top-five player Dylan Harper made Rutgers basketball a spectacle for the first time in years. He might be the only reason that the Jazz have two nationally televised games this season, and not just one.
The Jazz’s other first round pick, Walter Clayton Jr., was one of the most exciting players in college basketball last season. His absurd shot-making skills have drawn comparisons to the Knicks’ star guard Jalen Brunson, and when you watch the tape, you can see why.
Clayton will attempt some 35-plus footers next season, he will chuck some insane fadeaways, he will make Jordan Clarkson-esque falling layups and, oh yeah, he can posterize people too. Depending on playing time, Clayton will give a run for the Jazzman with the most plays on Sportscenter’s top 10 plays.
2. Abundance of college and high school hoops stars
We already mentioned Bailey, who is one of the more famous prospects in recent memory, but this Jazz team is loaded with names that basketball heads have known for years.
Isaiah Collier, who is coming off a season where he broke John Stockton’s Jazz rookie assist record, was the No. 1 player in the class of 2023, and then teamed up with Bronny James at USC for his lone collegiate season. Post All-Star break, Collier averaged 12.0 points and 7.1 assists per game. He was crowned the rookie of the month in February and finished 16th in the NBA in assists per game while only playing significant minutes for half of the season.
Second-year big man Kyle Filipowski was the No. 4 recruit in 2022, and was a major piece in Duke’s 2024 Elite Eight run. Filipowski had a dominant Summer League, averaging 29.3 points a game on 56.1% field goal shooting and 39.1% shooting from deep in Las Vegas. The NBA’s Summer League MVP is poised for a breakout season.
Keyonte George is another top-10 recruit from the class of 2022, and was a dominant freshman at Baylor. This could very well be a make-or-break season for George, with Clayton and Collier vying for his spot. George has shown flashes of being a legit starting guard in the NBA, but this season will show fans if his potential is real.
3. No more highlighter yellow, new purple branding
It may sound silly that one of the reasons to watch a team is how pretty the jerseys and court look, but after three seasons of watching a sub-.500 team play with the most horrendous uniforms to ever grace an NBA court, you’re lucky I didn’t put this at the top of the list.
Any jersey that would have followed the highlighters would have been an improvement, but even on their own, the Jazz’s new version the purple mountain jerseys are some of the most beautiful sets in the NBA. The “association” jersey will be the first white and purple jersey that Utah has worn since 2004, and oh boy do they look clean.
Even the new court is a plus, gaining high praise from fans across the league.
Combine this with rumors of the Jazz’s old “dark mode” sunset jerseys returning as the potential city jersey, and watching Jazz games will be like seeing a beautiful painting — just don’t pay attention to how many wins the painting gets.
4. Hop on the bandwagon now
Nothing feels better than liking a band before they made it big. It’s the same with basketball. Saying that you were all in on Giannis Antetokounmpo when he was just a teenage twig bouncing back and forth between the NBA and the G-league gives you some serious hoops cred.
Some of my favorite Jazz memories consisted of watching this no-name French guy with zero skill become one of the greatest players in franchise history, or watching Joe Ingles go from an unassuming white and unathletic nobody to one of the best 3-point shooters in the 2010s/2020s. If you watch this team now, you can say that you liked Brice Sensabaugh before he was an All-star or that you saw Will Hardy coach before he won six straight NBA Finals.
All jokes aside, watching a young team form its core and learn how to play with one another is very rewarding, and even with all the cringe-inducing basketball moments it can produce, when it clicks there is nothing better. Seeing the 2017-18 Jazz turn their season around with a rookie Donovan Mitchell at the helm was one of the most satisfying things I have ever seen as a basketball fan.
Make no mistake, the Jazz will not be good next year. That’s not the goal. But you are watching young players develop right before your eyes. Whether you like it or not, Bailey, Clayton Jr., Filipowski, Sensabaugh and the rest of the young crew are going to be a part of the core in Salt Lake City for years to come. Might as well invest now.
