What the Utah Jazz's former rookies need to work on during the Summer League

The Utah Jazz saw a trio of rookies play a good amount of minutes during the 2023-2024 season. The trio of Keyonte George, Taylor Hendricks, and Brice Sensabaugh struggled all season long to not only get consistent minutes, or be consistent on the court, but to also play winning-caliber basketball. Right now the trio are all on the team but that could easily change in a matter of weeks as the Utah Jazz go "big game hunting". Danny Ainge used that phrase to talk about the star players they're going to be angling for.

You don't get star players without trading away young ones and none of the three rookies showed enough in this most recent season to think they shouldn't be traded if the right trade comes along.

Yet, should they remain on the roster come this Summer League, then the trio have a lot of work to do and we're going to talk about what they need to focus on this offseason

Keyonte George - Make smarter decisions

George is someone who could be huge for the Jazz if he gets out of his own way. His three-point shot isn't good enough to have him shooting as often as he is from three, and despite starting strong as a passer, he regressed hard the more he took over the position. Granted, primary ball handlers usually lead the league in turnovers, but George had nearly as many turnovers as the top guys while playing just a fraction of the minutes. That's not good. He needs to develop that instinct on when to drive when to pass and when to pull up and shoot. It is something he does not have yet.

Taylor Hendricks - Be more aggressive

For Hendricks, the biggest issue on both ends of the court was his assertiveness. He seemed passive at times, not only physically but mentally. He didn't take a lot of shots, even though he looked like he had a nice touch around the rim. Defensively he was almost there, but he would back off his player on occasion and let them fly right by him, or he'd meet them in the low post and he'd be bullied off his spot. If he can be more assertive on the court, then he may just turn into the player the Jazz want him to be.

Brice Sensabaugh - Work on the three-point shot

Brice Sensabaugh needs the most work, as every element of his game can be worked on, yet we're going to focus on his three-point shot. In college, he shot over 40%, and as I believe that a shooter can shoot at any level, we thought he'd do a lot better than his 29.6% from three as a rookie. He struggled, and not only just with the Jazz. In the G-Leauge he only shot slightly better at 32%, and seeing how that a massive drop from his college level of 40.5%, it is concerning. Working on hitting his shot more regularly will make him far more valuable to the team going forward, even if his defense or passing doesn't improve all that much.