The Utah Jazz are facing a cruicial season in their rebuild, where the roster is full of youth, promise and potential. While a few veterans remain, many of the rostered players are 25 and younger, and opportunity is there for the taking in the 2025-26 season.
Lauri Markkanen and Walker Kessler are the only two players on the roster who are locks to be starters, meaning that three spots are up in the air. And with 11 players having 3 years or less of NBA experience (counting two-way players Oscar Tshiewbe, John Tonje, and Elijah Harkless), multiple players will NEED to step up to earn starting spots and places in the Jazz rotation.
With that in mind, here are three Utah Jazz players that are primed for breakout seasons in 2025-26:
Kyle Filipowski
As a second-round pick, Filipowski had the odds stacked against him in 2024-25. As an older rookie, his ceiling was viewed as lower compared to second-year forward Taylor Hendricks, who was slated as a starter that year.
However, Hendricks went down to injury in the third game of the year, opening a spot for Filipowski in the rotation. And he made the most of it, averaging 8.5 points, 5.4 boards, 2.3 assists, and 0.7 steals over the next month.
He missed nine of the next 12 games due to injury, and then returned to average 10.4 points, 6.6 boards, and two assists the rest of the way.
After a strong showing in the 2025 summer leagues (28.6 points, 7.7 boards, 56% from the field, and 39% from three), Filipowski should have a bigger role in 2025-26. He needs to improve defensively, but his offense isn't in question, and he should play around 25 minutes a night and set career marks in most categories.
Isaiah Collier
During his first 30 NBA games, Isaiah Collier saw the court for less than 20 minutes a night and struggled with his shot, making only 35% of his attempts from the field (and sub-20% from three).
While Jazz fans were notably concerned, another Jazz rookie point guard, Deron Williams, had shooting struggles (38% over his first 45 games), and then improved significantly as he adjusted to the NBA.
Collier is following a similar path. His shooting improved to 44%, as he averaged 12 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 7.8 assists the rest of the season. He set the rookie record for assists by a Jazzman and missed the All-Rookie 2nd team by one vote.
Stepping up his three-point shooting to 34% or better is the goal for Collier this year. If he does, it's easy to see him averaging 15 points or more along with 8 assists, and the Jazz should win more games.
Ace Bailey
As the most heralded Jazz rookie since Deron Williams, Ace Bailey is expected to do great things. While Will Hardy might want to roll with Cody Williams, Taylor Hendricks, or Brice Sensabaugh and avoid anointing the rookie too early, the fans have embraced him from the start.
As a six-foot-10 scorer and able defender, Ace can earn the starting spot next to Lauri Markkanen and Walker Kessler with a strong training camp. Even if he doesn't start from Day One, he should have a significant role early on and, like Deron Williams and Donovan Mitchell, earn the starting nod as a rookie.
It's not hard to see Ace topping D-Will's rookie scoring mark (10.3 points), though reaching Donovan's (20.5 points) is a stretch.
At Rutgers, Ace had Dylan Harper as the primary ballhandler, who was a score-first guard. Ace will love having Isaiah Collier, who is a pass-first guy, feeding him the rock. That should boost Ace's chances, and it will be exciting to see them on the court together.
These three Jazzmen have a big chance at breakout seasons in 2025-26. If they do, the Jazz will no longer be in the basement and the rebuild will be on track, giving long-suffering Jazz fans something to cheer about in Salt Lake City this season.