The last two seasons with the Utah Jazz have certainly not been easy for John Collins. There have been frustrating moments through mountains of losing that has seen him sidelined even though he is healthy enough to play. And there have been plenty of growing pains as he has learned to play with a new team.
“It’s a sticky situation and something that I’ve never necessarily been a part of,” Collins said of playing for a tanking team. “But in whichever way I can go forward with respecting the game, that’s like the only way I can really not think about it too much without driving myself crazy.”
Do the work, trust the work, always play with effort, respect the game. That’s the philosophy that Collins lives by and what he keeps in mind through the tough days.
But, through it all, Collins said he’s been able to find balance, look at the silver linings and come out on the other side better than he was when his journey began with the Utah Jazz. So, despite some of the uncomfortable feelings as the Jazz have navigated tanking and rebuilding, Collins is open to being a Jazzman for the duration of the team’s rebuild.
Would he rather be somewhere where the immediate goal was to win games and contend for a title?
“Not necessarily,” Collins said. “As long as I feel like I’m an important part or building block, part of the plan, etc., then I’m here for it. I’m a ride or die type of guy. I’m loyal, and if we’re gonna crash and burn, I’m with it.”
Collins laughed and noted that he certainly doesn’t want to crash and burn and doesn’t expect the team to. But he doubled down on the point he was trying to make. If the Jazz want him to stick around and have a role, then he will loyally stand with them whether they rise to the top or he has to go down with the ship.
Of course Collins wants to win games, but what seems most important to him is that he feels like he is a valued part of the future, that the Jazz can really see him being a part of the team when they finally turn the corner.
“As long as I feel like I’m an important part or building block, part of the plan, etc., then I’m here for it. I’m a ride or die type of guy. I’m loyal, and if we’re gonna crash and burn, I’m with it.”
— Jazz forward John Collins
There are a number of options for Collins and the Jazz to think through this summer and beyond. Collins has a player option for next season worth $26.5 million, the same amount he made during the 2024-25 season with the Jazz.
The first thing to decide is whether to exercise his player option. Declining the option would mean unrestricted free agency for Collins this summer. That decision needs to take into account a number of factors — which teams have cap space, how much he thinks he could make on the open market, if a lower salary but a longer deal would be worth it for security reasons.
Collins said he hopes to pick up his option, but that he’s open to all possibilities and wouldn’t be worried about free agency. He knows he’s not a No. 1 option, but does feel that he’s proven some things about his game since joining the Jazz two years ago.
He’s shown that his shot is not broken, shooting 37.1% from deep in his first season with the Jazz and 39.9% from 3-point range through the 2024-25 season. He also got more comfortable playing in lineups with Walker Kessler, found ways to operate off the elbow and create his own shots.
“I’m not sure what’s to happen, or you know what the future holds, but I hope to come to an agreement to move forward. The NBA is business at the end of the day, so I’m just open to anything. I just want it to be right.”
— Jazz forward John Collin on the future
His improvement over the last couple years and the fact that he’s still only 27 years old and that he will be extension eligible if he decides to exercise his player option, gives Collins hope that a more longterm deal can be worked out. But he knows that there are a lot of different ways things could go.
He could decline the option and sign a longterm deal with a different team. He could exercise his option then get traded and extended. He could exercise his option, get traded, then expire and be a free agent at the end of next season. He could sign an extension and stay in Utah.
“I’m not sure what’s to happen, or you know what the future holds, but I hope to come to an agreement to move forward,” Collins said. “The NBA is business at the end of the day, so I’m just open to anything. I just want it to be right — the right move. If it does mean staying here, being in Utah, I’m cool with that. I just want it to be right, and something that I can cherish going forward."
