UCLA Basketball: Former Bruins Star Signs New Two-Way NBA Contract

Maybe he can carve out a role if he continues to develop!

Former UCLA guard Johnny Juzang has agreed to return to the Utah Jazz for next season on a two-way contract, Juzang's Excel Sports agents Sam Goldfeder and Jordan Gelter inform Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. This news comes off the heels of an impressive Summer League showing for Juzang, as he averaged 17.8 points per contest.

The Jazz are coming off a surprising 2022-23 season in which they were more competitive than many thought they would be and now they will be looking ahead to possibly trying to go for a playoff spot this coming season.

The former UCLA product really struggled from deep last season in the NBA, shooting just 23.8 percent. But through the summer league, he showed some flashes of what he could be. He shot over 50 percent from distance during the summer games and will look to keep improving as the year goes along.

In his junior year with the Bruins, Juzang averaged 15.6 points and 4.7 rebounds per game. He also shot 36 percent from beyond the three-point line, making his struggles last season in the NBA seem like an outlier. 

No player in summer league hit more threes at a higher rate than Johnny Juzang.

Juzang had 12 makes on 52 percent shooting after shooting just 23 percent last season in the NBA.

— Ben Anderson (@BensHoops) July 17, 2023

During his time with UCLA, Juzang was apart of the team that went on a magical run to the NCAA Final Four in 2020-2021. It was a special year for everyone in Bruin-land and Juzang was a major reason why the team got that far in the NCAA Tournament. In their heartbreaking loss to Gonzaga, he scored 29 points but it just wasn't enough to get the victory for this team.

Juzang played 18 games with the Jazz last season and averaged 4.8 points over 12.9 minutes per game. With this new two-way designation, he will look to try and carve out a bigger role within the team.