Category: Utah Jazz Blog

The Utah Jazz have hired Eric Waters as Head Athletic Trainer.

A veteran in the athletic training field, Waters comes to the Jazz after spending 12 seasons (2004-16) as the head athletic trainer for the Washington Wizards, where was selected as the NBA’s Athletic Trainer of the Year by the National Basketball Athletic Trainers Association (NBATA) following the 2009-10 season. He has also served as an athletic trainer for the USA Men’s National Team since 2014.

Certified and licensed as an athletic trainer (ATC), strength and conditioning coach (CSCS), corrective exercise specialist (CES) and performance enhancement specialist (PES), Waters previously served as both Secretary of the NBATA, as well as the association’s Eastern Conference representative, and was a featured speaker at the 2010 National Athletic Trainers Association Conference in Philadelphia.

Prior to joining the Wizards, Waters spent four years as the assistant athletic trainer of the Chicago Bulls from 2000-2004. His career has also included assistantships within the athletic departments of Northwestern University and the University of Iowa, and he spent two seasons with NFL Europe working as the head athletic trainer for the London Monarchs and the assistant athletic trainer for the Rhein Fire, following an internship with the NFL’s Carolina Panthers.

Waters received bachelor’s degrees in both exercise science and psychology from the University of Iowa in 1995 and a master’s in exercise science from Boise State University in 1998. Waters has continued to enhance his skillset throughout his career by traveling abroad to study the latest high performance sport and sports medicine techniques and practices, and is currently pursuing a master’s in high performance sport (MPHS) degree from Australian Catholic University located in Australia.

Very involved in community efforts, Waters has made multiple international trips in support of the NBA’s Basketball Without Borders efforts, and is also active in the Big Brothers/Big Sisters program among others.

The Utah Jazz today revealed the designs for two of its new uniforms for the 2017-18 season with their “Association” (white) and “Icon” (navy) uniforms in partnership with the National Basketball Association’s new agreement with Nike as the official apparel provider. The uniforms also include the first-ever patch, sponsored by Qualtrics, with the 5 For The Fight logo representing the campaign for cancer research.

The look is aesthetically consistent with the team’s previous home and road uniforms.

A post shared by InsideHoops.com NBA Basketball (@insidehoops) on Aug 9, 2017 at 10:43am PDT

The Utah Jazz announced yesterday (Friday) that the team has signed forward/center Ekpe Udoh (pronounced EPP-ay You-Doe) to a multi-year contract.

Standing 6-10 with a 7-foot-4½-inch wingspan, Udoh (6-10, 245, Baylor) enters his first season with the Jazz, after a successful stint with Fenerbahce Ulker (Turkey) from 2015-17. During the 2016-17 season, he appeared in 61 games (47 starts) in the Euroleague and Turkish Basketball Super League, averaging 11.1 points, 6.9 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.9 blocks in 29.4 minutes per game. Udoh led Fenerbahce to their first ever Euroleague title and was named Final Four MVP. He averaged 14.0 points, 10.5 rebounds, 6.0 assists and 3.5 blocks in wins against Real Madrid and Olympiacos Piraeus in the semifinals and finals, respectively. He finished the season leading the Euroleague during league play in rebounds per game (7.8) and blocks per game (2.1) while setting a single-season Euroleague record with 68 blocks.

The 30-year-old was also named a 2017 All-Euroleague First Team member and Turkish Super League All-Star as well as a runner-up for the Best Defender Trophy.

Originally selected in the first round (sixth overall selection) of the 2010 NBA Draft by Golden State, Udoh has appeared in 270 career games (52 starts) over five seasons in the NBA with Golden State, Milwaukee and the LA Clippers. He owns career averages of 4.0 points, 3.2 rebounds and 1.2 blocks in 16.9 minutes.

Udoh played two collegiate seasons at Michigan (2006-08) where he was named to the All-Big Ten Defensive Team as a sophomore before transferring to Baylor. During his lone season with the Bears, he set a Big 12 and Baylor record with 133 blocks leading to All-Big 12 and All-American recognition by conference coaches and media after averaging 13.9 points, 9.8 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 3.7 blocks in 35.1 minutes over 36 games.

A fan favorite known throughout his basketball travels for establishing book clubs and holding movie nights with fans, Udoh was born and raised in Edmond, Okla., where he attended Santa Fe High School. Of Nigerian descent, his full given name is Ekpedeme, which translates to “Lion.”

He will wear No. 33 for the Jazz.

The Jazz have signed center/forward Eric Griffin to a two-way contract.

Griffin (6-8, 205, Campbell) competed with the Jazz during both the 2017 Utah Jazz Summer League in Salt Lake City and NBA Summer League in Las Vegas. In three games in Salt Lake City, Griffin averaged 8.6 points, 6.0 rebounds and 1.3 blocks in 17.8 minutes per game while shooting .588 percent from the field. He displayed steady improvement once the team arrived to Las Vegas, averaging 10.8 points, 7.8 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 3.0 blocks in 25.5 minutes over four games (one start), including two double-doubles.

Prior to summer league, the Orlando, Fla., native most recently competed for Hapoel Galil Gilboa in the Israeli Basketball Premier League, where he averaged 14.9 points, 7.1 rebounds and 1.8 blocks in 31.7 minutes per game this past season.

Additionally, Griffin has international experience playing in the United Arab Emirates, where he helped lead Al-Nasr Dubai SC to the 2015-16 Cup Final, as well as Venezuela, Puerto Rico and Italy. Stateside, he spent the 2014-15 season with the (now) NBA G League’s Texas Legends, where he was selected as an All-Star and chosen to the All-League Third Team and All-League Defensive Second Team after posting 19.0 points, 6.6 rebounds and 2.4 blocks in 49 games (48 starts). Griffin has also attended NBA training camps with Miami (2013), Dallas (2014) and Detroit (2015)

Griffin finished his collegiate career at Campbell University in Buies Creek, N.C., where in just two seasons (2010-12) he finished as the school’s career field goal percentage leader (.559) and ranked third on the Camels’ all-time blocks list with 134 rejections. As a senior he averaged 15.7 points, 8.6 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 2.4 blocks in 30.3 minutes and was selected All-Big South First Team. He also competed at Hiwassee College in Madisonville, Tenn., and Garden City Community College in Kansas before arriving at Campbell.

The 2017-18 season will mark the first year NBA teams can utilize two-way contracts. Teams will be permitted to carry two such players on their roster in addition to their 15-man regular season roster. Utah’s two-way players will spend time with the team’s exclusively owned and operated NBA G League team, the Salt Lake City Stars, as well as the Jazz, but no more than 45 days in the NBA, not including any time prior to the start of the Stars’ training camp and at the conclusion of the season. Griffin becomes the first Jazz player to sign a two-way contract.

The Utah Jazz have signed forward Royce O’Neale.

O’Neale (6-6, 226, Baylor) played for Gran Canaria in Spain during the 2016-17 season, averaging 8.3 points on 44.9 percent shooting, 5.2 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 20.6 minutes in 52 games (32 starts). He was the second-highest rated defender among all small forwards in the ACB, and also ranked second in rebound percentage (16.3) and fifth in assist percentage (17.1).

Additionally, O’Neale participated in the 2016 Utah Jazz Mini-Camp held at Zions Bank Basketball Center.

The 24-year-old played his first professional season in Germany for MHP Risen Ludwigburg in 2015-16, where he averaged 8.4 points, 4.5 rebounds and 0.9 assists in 46 games (28 starts).

A four-year college player, O’Neale spent two years at the University of Denver (2011-13) before finishing his collegiate career at Baylor (2013-15). He averaged 10.1 points, 5.9 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.2 steals as a senior for the Bears. Over his two seasons at Baylor, O’Neale shot 48.3 percent, including 44.8 percent from beyond arc. As a senior in 2014-15, he shot over 50 percent from three in 16 games and was also selected to the Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll.

Born in Killeen, Texas, the 6-6 forward played his high school basketball at Harker Heights High School in Harker Heights, Texas, where he set several school scoring and rebounding records.

He will wear jersey #23 for the Jazz.

The Utah Jazz have signed forward Jonas Jerebko (pronounced JO-ness Jeh-REB-ko) to a multi-year contract.

Jerebko (6-10, 231, Sweden) appeared in 78 games (six starts) for the Boston Celtics this past season, averaging 3.8 points, 3.5 rebounds and 0.9 assists in 15.8 minutes of action for a team that finished with the best record in the Eastern Conference and advanced to the Conference Finals.

Originally selected in the second round (39th overall selection) of the 2009 NBA Draft by Detroit, the 30-year-old has appeared in 488 career games (94 starts) over seven NBA seasons with Detroit and Boston. He owns career averages of 6.2 points and 4.1 rebounds while hitting 35.2 percent from three-point range in 18.4 minutes. He has shot 40 percent or better from three-point range in three different seasons, including two of his last three.

Jerebko has seen action in a total of 22 postseason games (four starts), all with the Celtics, averaging 5.0 points, 3.8 rebounds and 1.0 assist in 10.7 minutes per game. This past season, he appeared in 12 playoff games during the Celtics’ run for the Eastern Conference Finals, including a 10-point performance on 4-of-4 shooting from the field and 2-of-2 from three in Boston’s Game 3 win at Cleveland.

In his rookie season with Detroit, Jerebko earned 2009-10 All-Rookie Second Team honors as well as Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month for February and compete in the Rookie Challenge during NBA All-Star Weekend.

The son of a former professional European basketball player, Jerebko is a native of Kinna, Sweden, and represented his home country at the 2013 Eurobasket Championships, posting 16.0 points, 6.8 rebounds and 2.4 assists in five games.

He joins what was already the most international team in the NBA in 2016-17. The seven players on the current Jazz roster born outside the United States hail from Australia (two), France, Brazil, Spain, Switzerland and the Ukraine.

Jerebko is also owner of a professional eSports team, Renegades CS:GO.

He will wear jersey No. 8 for the Jazz.

The Utah Jazz have waived veteran center/forward Boris Diaw.

During his lone season in Salt Lake City, the 14-year veteran from France appeared in 73 games (33 starts), averaging 4.6 points, 2.2 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 17.6 minutes per game.

Diaw is a crafty big-man with good passing skills. There’s a good chance a team seeking frontcourt depth will offer him a contract for the upcoming season.

The Utah Jazz announced yesterday that the team has signed center Tony Bradley, the 28th overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft, to his rookie contract.

Bradley (6-10, 248, North Carolina) averaged 7.1 points and 5.1 rebounds in 14.6 minutes per game during his lone season with UNC. He ranked second on the team in field goal percentage (.573) and third in rebounds per game with over half of his rebounds coming on the offensive glass. The 6-10 center became the first player in school history with 150-or-more rebounds in a single-season with more offensive than defensive rebounds. Bradley recorded five points and seven rebounds to help the Tar Heels capture the 2017 National Championship.

The 19-year-old is currently playing as member of the Jazz entry at the 2017 Utah Jazz Summer League, recording eight points, five rebounds and two blocks in 22 minutes during his NBA debut on July 3 vs. San Antonio Spurs.

The Bartow, Fla., native was named the 2016 Florida Mr. Basketball and Gatorade Player of the Year while competing for Bartow High School. He also appeared in the McDonald’s All-American Game and the Jordan Brand Classic as a senior.

He will wear jersey #13 for the Jazz.