Grading the Jazz: Newcomers Darius Bazley and Kenneth Lofton Jr.
Editor’s note: Third in a series of stories grading all the Utah Jazz players from the 2023-24 roster.
The Utah Jazz made two late-season additions to the roster, giving both Darius Bazley and Kenneth Lofton Jr. three-year, non-guaranteed deals in mid-March.
The reason to give this kind of a deal to an unproven player is to maintain some control heading into an offseason while not risking much. The Jazz will be able to bring back Bazley and Lofton for offseason workouts as well as training camp. If they decide to move forward with the player, there is already a small and team-friendly contract in place and if they decide to move on from the player, they can just waive the player before a guarantee date in the contract (usually the day the regular season begins) is triggered.
Since the Jazz signed these guys so late in the season, there isn’t really a lot of data to evaluate as far as their time with the Jazz is concerned. But the whole point of signing these players is to gauge their future potential, so that’s what we’ll be grading today.
Darius Bazley — B+
The Jazz are actually the team that drafted Bazley back in 2019 (No. 23 overall), but he was sent to Memphis as a part of the package to acquire Mike Conley, and then Memphis traded him to the Oklahoma City Thunder.
I feel like a lot of Bazley’s career has been really bad timing. He’s been in the wrong spot at the wrong time and then some injuries didn’t help, so there’s a chance that he’s been overlooked the last couple of years. Arriving in OKC the year that they got Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, which preceded two tanking seasons, then being passed around after injuries, isn’t a great way to start a career.
Bazley doesn’t seem like the kind of player that is going to suddenly pop off the page and become an unsuspecting All-Star, but he does seem like he has the potential to be a role player that could provide important minutes for a team. That doesn’t mean he’s guaranteed to become that, but why not see if he can make some strides toward that?
Bazley played just nine NBA games last season (three with the 76ers, six with the Jazz), so there’s not a huge well of information. The things that stood out the most in his games with the Jazz were his size and his ability to utilize it in beneficial ways. He’s smart defensively and he’s fast, so when that’s paired with the kind of length that Bazley has, it makes for some impactful minutes. It also makes him really good in a switching defense, especially since he can recognize and recover on switches without thinking.
There is some real potential for Bazley to be a reliable NBA guy. Does it make sense for the Jazz to explore that potential? Well it depends on what the rest of the roster looks like and what their 2024-25 plans are. Would Bazley be used at the four spot? Does that interfere with what is expected of Taylor Hendricks or John Collins? If he’s a three, again there’s Lauri Markkanen and maybe Hendricks to worry about ahead of him on the depth chart.
But if the Jazz are going to be going through another rebuilding, possibly tanking season that cautiously (and purposefully) shuts down some of the starting guys at the end of the season, having another guy to develop on the roster at that position could be useful. Bazley will turn 24 in June, so he’s still young and there could be a lot of unlocked potential if given an opportunity.
Kenneth Lofton Jr. — A-
Coming off being the 2022-23 G League Rookie of the Year, Lofton made the 2023-24 All G League first team. In his minutes on the court he has always done what is asked of him and then some.
“He’s got savvy,” Jazz coach Will Hardy said. “I would say 90% of the plays, whatever he does, whether it works or it doesn’t, in my head I’m usually thinking, ‘That made sense.’ Kenny just seems to make sense when he plays.”
“I would say 90% of the plays, whatever he does, whether it works or it doesn’t, in my head I’m usually thinking, ‘That made sense.’ Kenny just seems to make sense when he plays.”
Jazz coach Will Hardy on Kenny Lofton Jr.
He’s smart with the ball, he can act as a secondary playmaker and is a good passer. He’s usually pretty good with the ball in his hands and can create his own shots and advantages, which again, makes him a good secondary playmaker. He’s a tough rebounder and he’s a natural scorer. I don’t think there’s ever really been any question about if Lofton is a talented or skilled player. His potential is through the roof. He’s actually a player that could turn into something really, really special.
Conditioning and weight have always been the biggest concerns. Over the last year, Lofton has had quite a physical transformation. It’s clear that he’s cut weight and has been doing what he can to make himself a more viable NBA prospect and he needs to do more of that. This summer is really important for him.
If Lofton can show that he’s dedicated to changing his body and getting into NBA shape, any NBA team would be happy to have Lofton on its roster. The fact that the Jazz have contract control as next season starts means that they could be the team that benefits from Lofton finally reaching his potential.
