Jazz F John Collins on Being a Career Starter: 'Something I Hold Dear'

The Utah Jazz forward has his sights set on a starting five spot this coming season.

Mar 27, 2024; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Utah Jazz forward John Collins (20) reacts to a call against the San Antonio Spurs during the first quarter at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images / Rob Gray-Imagn Images

Heading into the 2024-25 NBA season, the Utah Jazz have an interesting outlook when it comes to the future of their starting lineup, and who could be expected to be the first five players out on the floor during a year in which the rebuild and youth movement is expected to be in full effect.

It's no secret that All-Star talent Lauri Markkanen will have his spot locked into the starting five for the foreseeable future, especially so after his lucrative contract extension was signed earlier this offseason, yet beyond that, it's as good as anyone's guess.

This roster has an appealing collection of both young and veteran players who have a strong case to be among the first five on the floor, yet who ends up winning out those spots remains to be seen. However, it seems that second-year Jazz forward John Collins has made his thoughts clear on how he'd like his spot in the rotation to shake out during Utah's media day on Monday.

When dishing on how he views his role as a starter on his roster, Collins noted that being a career starter is something that he "holds dearly," loving to be the one to start each game off with the energy and intensity that the team needs:

"No, I definitely love being a starter. I appreciate and value being a career starter outside of my first year. It's definitely something that I take pride and value in-- going out and being one of those guys that starts the game off with energy, intensity, and fire. It sort of sets the tone. I enjoy that, and it's definitely something that I hold dear, for sure."

- John Collins on being a starter

Collins was a starter in all but two of his total 68 games across his 2023-24 campaign with Utah, averaging 15.1 points, 8.5 rebounds, and 1.1 assists in around 28 minutes a night. He also emerged as a much-improved shooter in terms of efficiency, taking his three-point percentage from a lowly 29.2% to 37.1% in just one season.

It's no secret that the former Atlanta Hawks big has a role within this rotation, but as the Jazz enter the next stages of their rebuild, you can't help but wonder if it'll impact the plans for Collins and his usage on a nightly basis.

With names like Taylor Hendricks and Walker Kessler emerging into their own within this Jazz core, some of Collins PT may inevitably fall in their hands, and could potentially even lead to his starting spot pivoting to one or both of them in the frontcourt and leaving Collins as a key bench piece rather than a plug-and-play starter.

As training camp and preseason unfold, shuffling through the frontcourt and how these roles will unravel for the season will be one of the more important tasks for Will Hardy to hammer out and one of the more intriguing storylines in the week leading up to Utah's regular season opener towards the end of the month.

The Jazz have just under three weeks to go until the action is officially on, with their opener vs. the Memphis Grizzlies looming right around the corner on October 23rd.

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