Last season, there was much to question on whether Utah Jazz point guard Keyonte George would be a long-time fixture on the team. Though having a decent season, averaging 16.8 points, 5.6 assists, and 3.8 rebounds, George faced problems with trying on the defensive end and his attitude at times during the season.
In one game against the Houston Rockets on April 2, 2025, George was pulled from the court to sit on the bench due to poor play. During a timeout later in the game, you could see every player interested in the huddle besides George.
He was sitting outside the huddle, uninterested in what was being said. Throughout the game, George was more than just a liability on the defensive end, letting everyone run past him for an easy shot at the rim.
No effort was shown throughout the game, and if you looked closely, you could see head coach Will Hardy badgering him to do anything. With a defensive rating of 123.2, George wasn’t even trying to stand in the way of anyone. Once the season ended and exit meetings were in order, Hardy didn’t mince his words with George.
“If your approach doesn’t change, I wouldn’t bet on you,” Hardy said calmly. “What you’re showing on the court isn’t good enough. You’re one of the most talented players I’ve ever been around, but you need to want more for yourself.”
Those words were the spark George needed to start his Most Improved Player campaign. Throughout the offseason, George committed himself to becoming a better leader, scorer, passer, and defender.
A New Offensive Sheriff in Town
George’s offensive output has skyrocketed from last year–he was averaging 16.8 ppg to a whopping 23.8ppg (a seven-point jump). Even more impressive, in a 10-game stretch from Dec. 12 to Jan. 3, George averaged 29.9 ppg.
During that span, George would go on to help in four major wins for the Jazz, including hitting a game-winner against the Detroit Pistons on Dec. 26, 2025. Buzzer-beater wins have been foreign to Jazz fans since Donovan Mitchell and Bojan Bogdanovic were traded away.
George brought that magic back to the Delta Center by hitting one of the biggest shots in his career against the second-best defense in the league, out-dueling Cade Cunningham in points scored.
The point guard faced a similar situation against the Memphis Grizzlies earlier in that 10-game span. On Dec. 12, George hit three clutch shots and three free throws in the fourth quarter to propel the Jazz into a win over the Grizzlies.
George is ranked 32nd in the NBA when it comes to usage percentage. He has a 26.9% usage percentage, sitting above players like teammate Lauri Markkanen, Trae Young, and Paolo Banchero.
This means that a lot of the Jazz’s offensive success runs through George, especially when you count his offensive rating of 118.2 this year– a stark difference from his and the team’s offensive rating the year before.
George’s offensive rating last year was 110.1, with a three-point shooting percentage of 34.3. His percentages all helped lead the Jazz to be in the bottom seven in the league in offensive rating, ranked 24th in the 2024-25 season. Now with a 37.1 three-point percentage and a better offensive rating, George helps the Jazz obtain a 115.5 in offensive rating, which is ranked 16th overall in the league.
The Jazz sit five spots ahead of the Portland Trail Blazers, a team led by George’s fierce competitor in the MIP race. Not only has George’s scoring improved, but his assists have as well. Last season, George averaged 5.6 assists per game. This year, he’s averaging 6.8 assists per game and ranks 14th in the entire league when it comes to dishing dimes.
George is No. 1 in total assists on the team with 279 on the season, outpacing fellow guard Isaiah Collier, who last year broke the assist record for Jazz rookies with 416 assists. The Jazz are now second in the league when it comes to assist percentage as a team, when just last year they were 18th in the league in the same category.
Is it a coincidence that the team’s assist percentage went up with George competing at a higher level? It may not seem like it. His best game this year when it came to assist was in the battle against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Jan. 7. There, George recorded 11 assists in the game and scored 25 points. He was just three rebounds away from recording a triple-double.
Chemistry and Free Throws
A lot of this assist and scoring success has come from George’s work in building chemistry with his teammates. In the summer of 2024, George went to Markkanen’s home in Finland. The two practiced their game together, and it paid off.
After doing some calculations, The Lead found that Markkanen and George were the third-best scoring duo in the league, in terms of ppg. They are also second in the league when it comes to the top two-man assists pairs, totaling 78 assists, just behind Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic.
With the bonus of being part of the best duos in the league, George upgraded his free-throw skills as well. George would average around 3.5 to 4.3 attempts per game, with a free-throw shooting percentage of 81.8%. In the 2025 offseason, George took a page out of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s book and improved his free-throw percentage and how he gets to the line as well.
This season, George averages 6.3 to seven attempts a game and now shoots 90.6% from the charity stripe. A massive leap that any player needs to make if they want to become an all-star.
What Defense and Winning Can Do
A stat that may halt George’s progress as a MIP finalist is his defense. As mentioned earlier, George’s defensive rating last year was 123.2. This year, his defensive rating is 125.1, just a tiny bit worse than last season.
Though both stats can be bloated due to the team being the worst defensive team in the league. Wins and losses are also going to come into play in this contest. Players who can win games for their team are heavily considered. The Jazz sit in the 13th seed in the Western Conference, whereas the Trail Blazers are the ninth seed, being led by MIP candidate Deni Avdija.
He is also having a terrific season and has helped the Trail Blazers get back into the playoff picture. Without W’s in the win column, NBA committees might not even look at George’s contribution.
MIP Finalist
Even with the knocks on George’s game, he still should be considered to win the MIP award. If he won, he would join Jazz teammate Markkanen in being one of the most recent Jazz players to win the award. George has taken the strides that NBA scouts thought he could when they watched him play at Baylor University.
He’s becoming a dynamic playmaker, he’s fixing his shooting percentages, and when fully healthy, he is helping the Jazz win games. George can and most likely will be an all-star caliber player.
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