Keyonte George has often said that he sees himself as one of the leaders on the Utah Jazz roster, but this summer he’s taking his leadership to new levels.
George has been around the Jazz’s young players all summer, spending the majority of his time working out in Salt Lake City. That hasn’t changed now that the Jazz’s Summer League squad, featuring Darryn Peterson, is practicing with head coach Steve Wojciechowski.
During a recent practice, George drew up an end-of-game play during a practice, to get the ball to Peterson. The play was successful and there were jokes about getting George on the coaching staff. But the jokes became serious.
An agreement was reached for George to be an assistant coach for one Summer League game, the Deseret News learned from George’s agent, Jason Ranne. The agreement came together quickly in the last 24 hours after George’s game-changing play was successful.
The game that George will be on the sidelines for? Well, of course it had to be the Jazz’s Las Vegas Summer League opener against the Washington Wizards and AJ Dybantsa on July 9.
In all seriousness, George will suit up with the coaches and while this is meant to be fun, it’s also a chance for George to expand on his leadership skills and continue his relationship with the Jazz’s younger players.
This is likely the first time an active player has been an official part of a summer league coaching staff, and as such, the Jazz had to clear the idea with the league office. It was given the green light so long as it is a single game and George isn’t compensated.
Entering his fourth NBA year, George had a breakout campaign for the Jazz last season, averaging 23.6 points and 6.1 assists per game.