Utah Jazz Draft Baylor Guard Keyonte George With 16th Pick

Jun 22, 2023, 7:51 PM | Updated: Jun 26, 2023, 12:58 pm

KSL Sports

SALT LAKE CITY – The Utah Jazz selected Baylor guard Keyonte George with the 16th pick in the 2023 NBA Draft on Thursday.

The Jazz used their second of three first-round picks on the guard from Baylor.

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With their first pick of the night, Utah drafted Central Florida forward Taylor Hendricks at No. 9.

Utah is also set to pick at 28th.

We got @keyonte1george at #16 🖤

Welcome to Utah!#TakeNote | #NBADraft pic.twitter.com/4tL2AS2VPj

— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) June 23, 2023

Prior to this year’s draft, the Jazz’s last first-round pick was Santi Aldama in 2021. Utah traded that pick to Memphis before the selection.

The last first-round pick to stay in Utah was Udoka Azubuike who was drafted with the 27th pick in 2020.

About Baylor Guard Keyonte George

Despite being listed at 6-foot-4 and 185 lbs, George has one of the better frames among first-year guards projected to be selected in the lottery.

The Baylor freshman has a stocky, strong build that ought to be able to handle the rigors of the NBA game, even early in his career.

Though he’s not an elite athlete, George has excellent body control and navigates the court with the ball in his hands, getting to his spots where he excels as a scorer, averaging 15.3 points per game.

Just that kind of game for Keyonte George right now

Has shirked some early turnovers to go unconscious off the dribble pic.twitter.com/kXo6lcvroZ

— Mark Schindler (@MG_Schindler) February 18, 2023

The guard is an adept scorer with the ball in his hands showing strong handles and an ability to get to his spots on the floor and in rhythm. He has a chance to be one of the more prolific scorers from this draft as he matures, and his game already resembles that of some of the league’s best perimeter players.

While consistency remains an issue, George scored 20 or more in 12 of his 33 appearances at Baylor and knocked down multiple three-pointers in 66 percent of his games.

The freshman had more games (13) in which he hit three or more three-pointers than he did one or fewer (11).

George’s 4.2 rebounds are a strong number, and 79 percent free-throw shooting on 4.5 attempts per game

Defensively, the freshman’s frame and strong balance made him a steady defender. As he ages, it wouldn’t be an enormous surprise if he became a very capable defender at the NBA level.

Chandler Holt is a Digital Sports Producer for KSLSports.com, specializing in all things basketball and football. Follow Chandler on Twitter at @ChandlerHoltKSL.