Utah Jazz vs New Zealand Breakers: Summary and Final Score

We did it, people! After a long off-season full of speculation and not as much movement as we had hoped, your Utah Jazz were back tonight with their first pre-season game against the New Zealand Breakers, a New Zealand professional team that plays in the Australian National Basketball League.

We won't have definitive answers to all of our questions, but many have been discussed throughout the summer and will be the focus of many during another transitional season for the SLC-based team.

Will Walker Kessler improve on his worrisome sophomore campaign?

Will Lauri Markkanen continue to break out after committing to the Jazz long-term with a 5-year, $238 million deal?

What roles will established veterans like Jordan Clarkson, John Collins and Patty Mills fill?

What will the second-year players look like? Will we see further growth from Keyonte George, Taylor Hendricks or Brice Sensabaugh?

How about the young people? Will rookies Cody Williams, Isaiah Collier or Kyle Filipowski emerge as starters early in the season or will there be a steep learning curve?

This match against the Breakers proved to be the perfect start to the pre-season for this young team. The Jazz featured a lineup of Keyonte George, Collin Sexton, Lauri Markkanen, Taylor Hendricks and Walker Kessler; with John Collins being left out surprisingly early (despite this being a preseason).

While they struggled defensively early in the first half, the Jazz stayed close and the Breakers were hot on offense from three minutes out. The Jazz seemed a little sluggish, and you can tell this team is still working on building some chemistry with so many young guys out there.

Lauri Markkanen was cooking early, looking confident and mid-season. The guy is just that good and made it look easy the entire game, scoring 13 points, all of which came in the first half. We also saw some great minutes from Collin Sexton and Keyonte George, with George looking much more confident offensively. The young guard scored 11 points in the first half, with two of three shots coming from the 3-point line.

Although the Jazz and Breakers remained tied for most of the first half, things picked up significantly towards the end of the second quarter, with the Jazz gaining a large lead of 63-47 at the end of the half. It was an encouraging end to the half, as the Breakers don't have a lot of NBA-level talent. The only standout player was 17-year-old Karim Lopez, a player Jazz fans should keep an eye on in the upcoming drafts. The kid seemed ready for the Breakers and finished the game with 13 points and 7 rebounds off the bench.

The second half was a completely different story than the first. The Jazz unleashed youth and achieved great success from some of their younger players. In the end, the young players were too much for the New Zealand Breakers and the Jazz started the preseason with a 116-87 win. Here are a few things that stood out during this game:

Johnny Juzang has taken a noticeable step up. He wants to prove that he is a permanent fixture in this rotation. Johnny took over the game with a game-high 19 points on 5 of 6 from the three-point line. Brice Sensabaugh also looked every bit the scorer with 12 points and great shooting.

I was also impressed by the defensive presence of offseason newcomer Drew Eubanks, a veteran who most recently played for the Phoenix Suns. He had a few highlight blocks and brought so much energy to the game.

Cody Williams had some great moments with some fantastic assists. Most will remember his two-handed throw in the second quarter, but it was a good sign of how much run he got from both the starters and the young guys. Overall, Cody finished the game with 29 minutes (the most on the team). Isaiah Collier played a lot of time (19 minutes) but didn't score many goals. He still looks like a rookie, even though his playing ability is flashing.

Taylor Hendricks fluctuated between looking lost and looking like a game-wrecker. His defense is still elite and he had a nice three-pointer in the second half, but a jump into his sophomore year remains to be seen. Again, this is the first game of the preseason, so the sample size is very small. If he can get his offense under control, the sky is the limit for the 9th overall pick in 2023.

My biggest question remains Walker Kessler's future on this team. He seemed more confident in the game, but Kessler still struggles to come up big on putbacks and near the basket. For a player entering his third year, that's still pretty concerning. He also missed all four free throws he made, which is another big problem. Overall, Kessler had a decent game and showed his strong rebounding and defensive presence.

Ultimately, this was an entertaining first appearance for your Utah Jazz. There are still a lot of questions and a lot of basketball still to be played. The Jazz are back in action on Monday, October 7th at home against the Houston Rockets.

Stay tuned, folks! JAZZ BASKETBALL IS BACK!