The Utah Jazz, despite falling below .500 for the season, are still on pace for some record-setting numbers.
's defense as a whole has left more to be desired, currently ranked among the bottom of the NBA in terms of defensive efficiency, their offense has turned out to be rather productive through the first half of the regular season.
After the first 38 games of the season, the Jazz have dealt out 1,140 assists as a team; an average of 30 dimes a game, and so far, a record for the team in that same 38-game timeframe. The squad has dished out 1,140 assists this season, the most in the first 38 games of any season in team history 📈However, if the Jazz can continue to keep that ball movement at a high level, there's a world where Utah can keep this same pace up to surpass Utah's all-time record for assists in a single season.Currently, the Jazz's record for most assists in a single season sits at 2,407 during their 1987-88 campaign––over 150 assists higher than the team's next-best season, and an average of just under 30 assists a game. To no surprise, that team record came right at the start of the rise to John Stockton's surging status as one of the best passers in league history. In that 1987-88 season, he led the team in assists with 1,128, a number that also led the league for assists by a single player for that year, but still didn't even account for half of the entire roster's total. However, this season, the Jazz can have a real chance at breaking that assist record that Stockton played a key part in, even if it may not be topping his all-time career assists mark, which, even for the best passers in the league today, will be a tough nut to crack. Jan 1, 2026; Inglewood, California, USA; Utah Jazz Head Coach Will Hardy talks with guard Isaiah Collier during the first half against the Los Angeles Clippers at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images | Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images To do so, the Jazz will have to continue their current assists average per game throughout the remaining half of the regular season schedule, which would allow this roster to claim 2,460 assists on the season within an 82-game sample size, and just a notch higher than Utah's 1987-88 team pulled off. There's still a long way to go for the Jazz to reach that mark for a franchise record, but if they are able to sustain their current pace offensively, especially in Will Hardy's system that values moving the ball around to his multiple scorers on the roster that hasn't shown any signs of pivoting from that strategy. Keyonte George has continued to cement himself as a growing facilitator through his breakout third season. Isaiah Collier remains a key playmaker for the Jazz within the second unit, and even for guys in the frontcourt like Jusuf Nurkic, who's averaging a career-high 4.4 points per game, that high focus on moving the ball has rubbed off in a big way. So long as the Jazz's top offensive pieces stay healthy and available, and this unit keeps up at its current pace, 2,460 assists is wildly achievable. And when paired with a 123.2 defensive rating on the other end—the worst in the NBA—it makes the focus on scoring those additional points even easier.Cody Williams Sets Unwanted NBA History in Jazz Loss to HornetsJared Koch is the deputy editor of Utah Jazz On SI. He's covered the NBA and NFL for the past two years, contributing to Denver Broncos On SI, Indianapolis Colts On SI, and Sacramento Kings On SI. He has covered multiple NBA and NFL events on site, and his works have also appeared on Bleacher Report, MSN, and Yahoo.
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