Keyonte George came into the 2024-25 season with much hype compared to other young Utah Jazz players. His rookie season showed promise, but his inefficiency was also his Achilles heel. With a bigger role, the Jazz banked on George improving on that front.
With the season more than halfway over, George's averages are technically better, but his percentages indicate that his inefficiency has remained the same. His scoring numbers are higher, but that's because the Jazz have given him more minutes and touches. George's failure to take another step forward has created one of the worst storylines of the season.
This is not welcome news for the Jazz because George was considered a potential future building block. Now, there's a lot more uncertainty. This doesn't mean that George can't be part of their future, but it could mean he might not be a vital cog in their next playoff contender.
Isaiah Collier's rise is making this look pretty clear
What's made George look worse is that Isaiah Collier has started to put it together. Now, that is good news for the Jazz. Collier was hyped up as a draft-day steal, and while he didn't hit the ground running like Donovan Mitchell did his rookie year, Collier is showing signs that he is the building block Utah hoped George would become.
His outshining George further emphasizes that the latter might not be a franchise player in the making. That's not the worst fate in the world because the Jazz can simply draft someone who could play at the level Utah hoped George would. It's a shame that his inconsistency is the one thing holding George back.
George is young enough that it's certainly too early to give up on him. He could be an important part of the Jazz's next playoff team, but it might be too lofty to expect him to be a franchise player in the making. He might thrive with fewer expectations put on him.
Jordan Clarkson's role as Utah's future Sixth Man might suit him better. The Jazz have been using him that way lately, with Collier's rise over the past month. His inefficiency could be excused in a role like that because that's how it works with players like him and Clarkson.
It's too early to declare anything about George's long-term future, but his sophomore season has largely been the same as his rookie season. It's not like Walker Kessler, who had an elite rookie season and then followed it up with a disappointing sophomore campaign. No improvement can be a very telling sign of George's ceiling.
The upside to lower expectations is that less pressure could actually be the key to George unlocking his full potential, even if he may not make an All-Star team in the future.