More than a decade later, jazz finally fills Deron Williams’ void

For the Utah Jazz, Deron Williams feels far in the past. It’s been almost fifteen years since they parted ways with him, and while the team had their good years without him, they haven’t really had a player who aptly filled the void he left behind. However, that may not be the case anymore as it appears Keyonte George could be their next franchise point guard and the first since D-Will.

Since the Williams trade, the Jazz have had notable point guards over the years, including Devin Harris, George Hill, Ricky Rubio and Mike Conley. For all the qualities these four brought to the table, none of them ever played at the level of a franchise player like Williams.

Now, George hasn’t necessarily risen to become the best Williams yet, but his play this year has been so exciting because it’s so reminiscent of the way Williams made himself stand out. Given his improved playmaking and ability to shoot free throws, George doesn’t necessarily have to be D-Will 2.0, but he could be close.

Other numbers just show how good George has been this season.

But let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves. George still has a long way to go before he reaches Williams’ mark. Let’s be real, though. Comparing the two would have been laughable at the start of the season, and now reaching Williams’ level is achievable for George.

No, this isn’t a shot at Donovan Mitchell

Some might see the fact that Mitchell’s name wasn’t mentioned here as a shot at him. Let’s clear the air before anything gets misinterpreted. Mitchell is one of the best scorers in Jazz history and currently one of the NBA’s most lethal scorers. However, he doesn’t fit the profile of a classic point guard and never has. Mitchell was more of one combination guard.

The elite scoring and solid playmaking ability cannot be denied, but the average number of assists Mitchell has ever made over the course of a season is 6.1, and he averages between four and five. When he was a Jazzman, they always put him next to a quality point guard, like Rubio first and Conley second. Even in Cleveland, he is surrounded by players like Darius Garland and Lonzo Ball to take care of the game.

Mitchell is a point-first player, and he always has been, and that’s what makes him great. George has clearly shown that he can also score at will when he is playing; the main difference is how good a playmaker he is. That’s why Williams is the jazz legend he’s being compared to, not Mitchell.

There’s still plenty of season left, so this version looks a bit bizarre and may look even more so as the season progresses as George deteriorates. If he doesn’t, and even goes further, Utah would be happy to know the Jazz have a modern D-Will on the team.