The truth about Kris Dunn and 3 more observations from the Utah Jazz’s preseason debut

Oct 8, 2023; Honolulu, Hawaii, USA; Utah Jazz guard Kris Dunn (11) drives to the basket between Los Angels Clippers guard Joshua Primo (11) and guard Amir Coffey (7) during the second half at SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center. Mandatory Credit: Steven Erler-USA TODAY Sports

Kris Dunn looked great against the Clippers but his stat line is deceiving

Kris Dunn is going to be someone who the Utah Jazz could benefit from. He’s the most well-rounded point guard, and his ability to pass and play defense is going to be crucial. Defense matters in the NBA, no matter what the league wants to sell you about superstars. Having a good perimeter defender to anchor things with Walker Kessler roaming the paint is going to be huge for them.

But don’t let his preseason debut fool you; Dunn is a liability when it comes to scoring. He had a solid season with the Jazz in 2022-2023, shooting 54% from the floor and 47% from three. Now, you may see that and think “he’s clearly improving” but keep in mind he put those numbers up at 28, not 22. Players don’t magically take a career-defining leap that late into their careers most of the time.

And we know that’s likely the case, as he only played in 22 games last season. The shorter the amount of data you give, the more likely you are to get an inaccurate result. The Jazz were the number one seed for a short time last season, but the more action they saw, the more the team came back down to Earth; even before the trade of Mike Conley.

Dunn looked great on Sunday, going 7-7 from the floor while hitting 1-1 from three to finish with 15 points (and five assists). That isn’t realistic for Dunn to keep doing, as he’s proven that the more shots he takes, the more misses he incurs.

Dunn for his career has shooting splits of .432/.313/.744 and those are numbers you can expect from him this season, assuming he makes the team and sees minutes throughout the year.

Despite that all, he’s still the best option to start for the Utah Jazz. You don’t need to be a great scorer to be an impactful player, which Dunn can absolutely still be.