Heading into the 2025-26 NBA campaign, the Utah Jazz will roll out one of the youngest lineups in the entire league.
The rotation will be filled with first, second, and third-year players getting heavy minutes. Development is primed to be a priority, and with that youth and inexperience, there could be some struggles and turbulence for this young group to face throughout an 82-game stretch.
But in the mind of Jazz head coach Will Hardy, he’s not looking at his team’s youth as a hindrance— he’s using it as a leg-up on the competition.
“We have to use youth as our advantage. We can’t only look at the downsides of youth,” Hardy said after the Jazz’s preseason game vs. the San Antonio Spurs.
One of those advantages that youth provides is the high-level energy on the floor on a nightly basis, and giving that consistent energy across the course of a long and strenuous 82-game season.
Compared to other experienced, older teams, the Jazz have the edge, and Hardy wants to use that to this group’s benefit by becoming the best conditioned team in the NBA.
“Sure, there are moments we haven’t been in as a group, and there’s a lack of experience in certain moments. But I look at the length of the season, 82 games, and we should be an energetic team. Our hope in camp, and part of the reason we’re trying to get these minutes at this level right now, is that we want to be the best conditioned team in the league.”
“We always want to try to flip the narrative on it’s head. Sure, there’s negatives to being young, but there’s also a lot of positives.”
And through just two preseason games, the Jazz are already showing they can keep up with those conditioning requirements as shown in their latest overtime loss vs. the Spurs.
Oct 10, 2025; San Antonio, Texas, USA; Utah Jazz guard Keyonte George (3) shoots over San Antonio Spurs center Bismack Biyombo (18) during the second half at Frost Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images / Scott Wachter-Imagn Images
Ace Bailey played 38 minutes, Keyonte George played 35 minutes, Walter Clayton played 33, and Taylor Hendricks even played 34 minutes in his second game back on an NBA floor––all of whom had productive games on their parts with that heavy PT.
Albeit while in a narrow 130-134 loss, the Jazz showed a glimpse of how the extensive youth they possess can actually be a major benefit to their success on the floor in a year where the expectations have been set pretty low because of it.
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