Utah Jazz: The 50 greatest players in franchise history

Utah Jazz (Photo by Daniel Lippitt/Getty Images)
Utah Jazz (Photo by Daniel Lippitt/Getty Images)
18 of 50

All-time greatest Utah Jazz players: No. 33 Alec Burks

  • Seasons with the franchise: Eight (2011-12 to 2018-19)
  • Regular-season games played: 382
  • Averages as a Jazzman: 9.6 points, 2.9 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 0.6 steals, 0.2 blocks
  • Shooting percentages: 42.5 from the field, 35.5 from three, 76.8 from the foul line
  • Playoff games with Utah: 13
  • Postseason averages: 8.3 points, 2.7 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 0.5 steals, 0.1 blocks

Houdini. A-Buckets.

If not for the persistent injury-related issues, Alec Burks might have reached another level in his pro career. After all, the 6-foot-6 forward, who went No. 12 overall to the Utah Jazz at the 2011 NBA Draft, didn’t have the chance to play in more than half of his team’s regular-season games in half of his eight seasons in Salt Lake City.

Still, Burks showed flashes of stardom with the Jazz, most consistently in 2013-14 when he averaged 14.0 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 2.7 assists across what is still to this day — the 29-year-old is currently a key reserve for the New York Knicks — his career-high 78 regular-season appearances.

And from 2013-14 through 2015-16, Burks’ scoring average never dipped below 13 points per game, albeit he never played more than 31 games in the latter two seasons of that three-year span.

In 2018, the Jazz sent Burks to the Cleveland Cavaliers as part of the Kyle Korver trade.