KSL.com Utah Jazz reporter
SALT LAKE CITY — Anthony Edwards made sure Ace Bailey knew what he had just done.Late in Minnesota's 120-113 win over the Jazz Monday, Bailey drove baseline, jumped around Edwards, and slammed home a high-flying reverse dunk.
So after the game, Edwards approached the Jazz rookie about the play."He asked if I dunked on him," Bailey said with a smile. "I said, 'Was that you?' I didn't know. I just went up."The play was an exclamation point on what was a special night for Bailey. For the first time, the 19-year-old wing was in Utah's starting lineup."I thought Ace did great," Jazz coach Will Hardy said. "For the most part, he played within the system offensively, and his burst and athleticism are very evident, not just off the dribble, but cutting, crashing the glass. He gives us a really good lift."Bailey found out he was being inserted into the starting lineup on Sunday during practice, and he immediately began asking questions."I didn't want to be wrong about nothing," Bailey said.As he was on the training table getting taped up before the game, he asked Keyonte George about plays and certain sets. And he let his teammates know to be a bit hard on him.If he messed up, he wanted to know about it."He takes ownership of everything he does," said George, who had 27 points for the Jazz. "I think all the questions that he asked, like he came in prepared." ACE BAILEY REVERSE DUNK OVER ANT 😱 pic.twitter.com/ZBsrlMORUn— NBA on ESPN November 11, 2025 Bailey's stat line didn't jump off the page — he finished with 10 points, seven rebounds and two assists in the loss — but his teammates and coaches left impressed with his performance.He made hard cuts, he won offensive rebound battles, and he made good passes . In the end, he fit right in — and that stood out to his team."I just love the fact that he's competing really hard," Hardy said. "I think he's a great teammate, and he's showing the ability to really learn quickly. We're getting more and more flashes of Ace's talent and his ability."Flashes like when he reached over Edwards and tipped the ball to himself for an offensive board before finishing the play with a putback. Or the acrobatic reverse dunk. Or his one-footed fadeaway midrange jumper."I actually had seen him do it in college, which I was telling everybody," veteran forward Kevin Love said o
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