The No. 10 overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, Utah Jazz rookie Cody Williams, said that he won’t be scared to play against LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers.
“There’s a reason I play in the NBA,” Williams told Fox News Digital. “He needs to watch out for me too.”
Williams, meanwhile, seems to still think highly of the 39-year-old and admire everything James has achieved in his professional career. Williams, who described James as a “legend,” added that playing against the 19-year-old will be “cool.”
“But I play in the NBA too,” he added. “There’s a reason I got drafted at ten. I promise not to be star struck; I will still treat him with respect and confront him to let him know that I am also expected to be there.
The youthful player was selected by the Jazz, who are coming off a disappointing regular season in 2023–24. Utah finished as the No. 12 seed in the Western Conference after winning just 31 of its 82 games, which is six fewer than the Jazz won in the regular season in 2022–2023.
Given that the Jazz only won two of their final ten games and finished the season with a loss to the Golden State Warriors, they particularly struggled to win games near the end of the season.
Williams just had a standout performance in four games played in the Las Vegas Summer League. He averaged 15.0 points on 54.8 percent field goal shooting and 37.5 percent 3-point shooting during that time, along with 3.0 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 1.0 block per game.
Williams attended the University of Colorado Boulder for one season of college basketball before the Jazz selected him with the lottery choice. He scored 11.9 points, grabbed 3.0 rebounds, and disheveled 1.6 assists per game in his one and only season with the Buffaloes.
Williams appears to have the confidence required to forge a successful NBA career, if his recent remarks about James are any guide. Fans of the Lakers and Jazz should mark their calendars for the upcoming 2024–25 regular season, when the two clubs will play one other for the first time.
It’s important to keep in mind, though, that the regular season schedule for 2024–25 has not yet been made public.
Jordan Clarkson of the Utah Jazz will get a harsh reality check about his trade value during the 2024 offseason.
The Utah Jazz have long been known to be shopping Jordan Clarkson, but if new rumors are to be believed, no one has shown interest in the former NBA Sixth Man of the Year.
After an inconsistent 2023–24 season, the 32-year-old combo guard has drawn no interest in trades, according to Andy Larsen of the Salt Lake Tribune.
Clarkson, on the other hand, needs a strong season to recover from his severe efficiency issues from the previous one. No other NBA clubs have expressed interest in trading for his services as of yet, according to Larsen’s writing.
Jordan Clarkson participated in 55 games during the 2023–24 regular season, averaging 17.1 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 5.0 assists while shooting a pitiful 29.4 percent from three-point range and 41.3 percent from the field overall. Back, groin, and thigh pain dogged his campaign.
With two years left on his deal, the ten-year veteran will make $14.1 million the next season. By the time he turns 34 in the summer of 2026, he will be a free agent without restrictions.
There are other Utah Jazz veterans available for trade besides Jordan Clarkson. This offseason, Lauri Markkanen has been the talk of trades, and unlike Clarkson, a lot of teams are interested in signing the Finnish international.
The Utah Jazz have a wealth of guards.
Jordan Clarkson will probably start the following season as a reserve behind Collin Sexton and Keyonte George if he isn’t sold this offseason. In the backcourt, Isaiah Collier and Johnny Juzang will also compete for minutes.
With a 31-51 record at the end of the regular season, enough for 12th place in the Western Conference, the Utah Jazz missed the postseason yet again.
Danny Ainge, the manager of the Utah Jazz, stated earlier in the summer that he is looking for a superstar to quickly turn the team’s fortunes around.
