Utah Jazz pay local high school a surprise visit

At East High School, students thought they were going to a normal assembly on Monday. When they walked into the gym, they thought they might be watching their teachers and school staff face off in a basketball game meant more for humor than anything else.

The students were told that the assembly was a Jazz-sponsored event, so when Jazz Bear rode into the gym on a motorcycle, they were excited, but they had no idea what was coming next — that the Utah Jazz players would hold their annual intra-squad scrimmage in the gym made famous by “High School Musical.”

As the full roster of Utah Jazz players ran onto the court, the students erupted into a frenzied roar of surprise. And the din of the crowd continued over the next hour as the scrimmage turned into a reason for the players to put on a shooting and dunking highlight show for the kids.

“We can all kind of lose touch with where we all fell in love with basketball,” Jazz head coach Will Hardy said. “High school basketball for a lot of us — players, coaches, people that played — some of your best memories are playing with your friends growing up, playing in front of your friends in the stands. There’s nothing like the energy of a high school gym when it’s packed."

But as much as the students enjoyed the surprise, the players seemed to enjoy themselves just as much. They were laughing and cracking jokes and talking with students who were sitting in the bleachers behind the benches.

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And let’s not forget that most of the Jazz players aren’t that far removed from high school themselves.

But when 19-year-old rookie Ace Bailey leaned into the crowd to take a selfie, the students reacted like he was a bonafide and proven NBA star rather than a teenager who has yet to play in an NBA game.

And Bailey wasn’t the only one that was giving the crowd a show. Lauri Markkanen, who hasn’t been fully participating in training camp, nursing a wrist injury from his EuroBasket run over the summer, warmed up with his teammates and made sure to get off a few dunks that would have earned him high scores in the All-Star Dunk Contest.

Taylor Hendricks, who hasn’t been publicly seen on a basketball court in almost a year after breaking his leg las season, was throwing down alley-oops left and right for the baseline crowd to enjoy. Bailey, Brice Sensabaugh, Keyonte George and a number of other players got in on the dunking festivities and made sure that every student came away feeling like they got to see something special.

“We have a great group of young men,” Hardy said. “And to watch how they interact with the fans, their personalities, the way they’re gracious with all these kids is good to see, because we obviously want to be a great basketball team, but we also want to be really great members of this community.”

It was a light hearted affair that made the students and the players all feel like they can’t wait for the 2025-26 NBA season to begin.