The Utah Jazz Need to Figure Out Who Is Closing Games

The Utah Jazz are still in the process of figuring out their long-term closer, which is understandable for a rebuilding team

The absence of a go-to option in the clutch signals something bigger than a single missed shot — it points to uncertainty about the team’s identity and how it chooses to finish games.

Closing is less a single act and more a habit. When the fourth quarter turns messy, the real test is not only who can make the shot, but who can calm things down, keep perspective, and nudge a messy sequence toward the end the team wants.

On paper, Lauri Markkanen is the obvious answer to the dilemma. He is the team’s most consistent scorer, and his length and touch make him hard to guard. He can bury a three, step in for a mid-range jumper, or finish through contact when he gets a seam.

Still, being the top scorer does not automatically equate to being the top closer. Closing often means making something out of nothing, taking a broken possession and turning it into an advantage, reading help defenders, and capitalizing on their mistakes.

Markkanen has hit clutch shots, but his best work usually comes when the offense is flowing, and teammates are moving. That reliance on structure helps the team for most of the game, yet it can become a limit when the clock is short, and defenses start changing looks.

Young Jazz Players Have Shown Promise

Keyonte George is the candidate who excites because of temperament as much as skill. George plays with a kind of acceptance of responsibility that is rare for a young guard. He will take the ball late, and the weight of that choice is visible on the court.

Sometimes his decisions look rushed, and turnovers creep in when the moment forces him to grow faster than repetition allows. Those mistakes matter, but they are the same mistakes that come with learning to lead.

If the Jazz want a closer who can create off the bounce, who can push tempo even with the clock low, George is the developmental piece that makes the most sense. He needs reps in high-pressure moments, and he needs coaching that encourages better reads rather than punishing the instinct to act.

Brice Sensabaugh presents a different, simpler case. He is fearless with the ball. Where others hesitate, he attacks.

That mindset is both a blessing and a risk. In the best case, it yields contested shots that fall and momentum shifts that change games. In the worst case, it produces isolation possessions that kill shot clocks.

The league rewards players who keep shooting when the pressure is on, as long as there is some consistency and discernment in shot selection. Sensabaugh’s path to a clutch role is through sharpening when to attack and when to trust ball movement.

Cody Williams does not fit the traditional closer’s mold because he is not primarily a scorer, but winning late-game basketball is not solely about hitting the final shot.

A single defensive play can end a possession and set up a winning bucket. Williams could grow into a valuable glue guy, someone who guards the right targets and creates transition chances. When close games are decided by half possessions, that kind of defensive value can be decisive.

Supporting Players’ Defense Shapes a Closer’s Success

It is also important to remember the supporting cast and how their strengths shape any closer’s chance of success. Rim protection and rebounding matter in the final minutes. Walker Kessler’s shot-altering, Taylor Hendricks’ switch instincts, and the team’s interior physicality change how opponents attack the Jazz in crunch time. A closer who is left exposed by poor protection will struggle even if he makes tough shots.

Jazz Need Clarity and a Defined Approach for Closing Games

So what is going to be the Jazz’s identity? Is Utah going to lean on a big man who spaces the floor and waits for structure, or a guard who forces late actions? Do they want multiple interchangeable closers depending on matchups, or a single player who takes ownership?

Right now, they are caught in between it all, and that indecisive state makes every late-game scenario feel experimental.

For the moment, Markkanen is the safest choice for a go-to option. For the future, George offers the highest upside as a true late-game creator. Sensabaugh supplies the fearless shot maker the team sometimes needs, and Williams provides defensive balance.

The answer the Jazz find may not be a single name. It could be a rotation, a set of roles, a philosophy stitched together by coaching and repetition.

The personnel are present. What is missing is clarity and the consistency that comes from committing to a single approach, giving players the space to learn what it takes to close.

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