The Utah Jazz are heading into a season with real optimism, but the national TV schedule doesn’t exactly match the buzz.
After the league released every team’s slate, Utah landed six national TV games. That’s a jump from last season, when the Jazz were on only two. Still, for a team expected to have its best year since the Donovan Mitchell/Rudy Gobert era, it’s not much of a spotlight.
Here are Utah’s six national appearances:
- Tues, Nov 17: at Clippers, 9:00 p.m. MT - NBC/Peacock
- December 1 at Warriors, 8:00 p.m. MT - NBC/Peacock
- January 19 at Nuggets, 8:00 p.m. MT - NBC/Peacock
- February 3 at Rockets, 8:30 p.m. MT - ESPN
- February 9 vs. Rockets, 8:00 p.m.
MT - NBC/Peacock
- February 27 vs.
Wizards, 1:00 p.m. MT - Amazon Prime
Only six teams got fewer national TV games: Chicago, Brooklyn, Memphis, Milwaukee, New Orleans, and Sacramento.
That lines up with the reality Utah has to change. The Jazz may believe they’re ready to make noise, and there’s no telling how good they can be now that they’re done tanking and Jaren Jackson Jr. will be fully integrated. But the league clearly wants to see it first.
Last season’s two national TV games were tied to a very different version of the team, one shaped by players like Walker Kessler bowing out early and Lauri Markkanen putting together historic stretches before being sidelined to help the team intentionally lose. That won’t be the issue this time around.
Even so, Utah still has to earn its reputation on the floor. Small-market teams don’t get much national attention unless they’re both good and entertaining, and the Jazz are still in the proving-it phase.
There’s also the simple fact that they’re a small-market team, and that won’t change. Once they start building a real winning identity, the attention should follow. For now, though, the Jazz are still waiting for the rest of the NBA to catch up to what they think they have.
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