Is the Utah Jazz’s roster set for the start of the regular season?
The Utah Jazz are nearing the start of the regular season, and with that comes the final questions regarding the team’s starters, its bench rotation, and of course, the roster as a whole. The team has already cut three players heading into the last preseason game of the year; Michael Devoe, Keshawn Justice, and Romeo Langford.
Prior to the cut, the Utah Jazz had 21 players on their roster. Now, with Devoe, Justice, and Langford no longer on the team, the Jazz are down to 18 players. This seems like a lot for an NBA team but it’s not, this is actually the number of players that most NBA teams will carry to start the season.
Now, that may leave you asking, “How can an NBA team carry 18 players?”, and that’s a good question.
So every NBA team is only allowed to have 13 players dressed for NBA games but can have 15 on the roster if they so choose. Every team has to decide who they want to carry as part of their core 13 players prior to every game.
Beyond the 15 active players on each team, each squad is able to carry three more additional players on what is called “two-way contracts”. These contracts allow the NBA team to call up players in an emergency to play for the team but otherwise are allowed to play for the team’s G-League affiliate.
The two-way players don’t affect the team’s roster count, but can only play 50 of a possible 82 games with the NBA squad. If an NBA team doesn’t have 15 full-time contracts, the players on two-way contracts can play a combined 90 games between the NBA and G-League.
As for the Jazz, they have every spot on their 15-man roster filled, as well as all three of their two-way contracts assigned. The team will likely make moves throughout the season, but this is the likely squad going forward for at least the regular season;
- Ochai Agbaji
- Jordan Clarkson
- John Collins
- Simone Fontecchio
- Keyonte George
- Taylor Hendricks
- Talen Horto-Tucker
- Walker Kessler
- Lauri Markkanen
- Kelly Olynyk
- Brice Sensabaugh
- Collin Sexton
- Omer Yurtseven*
- Kris Dun*
- Luka Samanic*
Two Way Players
- Josh Christopher
- Johnny Juzang
- Micah Potter
* – Contracts that are only partially guaranteed.