As expected, the Utah Jazz are not anywhere near the playoff hunt this season. They may have done even worse than what was thought of them in the preseason. Their record through 31 games is an ugly 7-24. Only two teams, the New Orleans Pelicans and Washington Wizards, have worse records than them this season.
With playoff or even Play-In Tournament aspirations a pipe dream, it can be expected that Utah will further try to develop their youth with 51 games remaining in the regular season. Perhaps one of those players can be Elijah Harkless, who the team has added on a two-way deal.
Jazz Add Elijah Harkless On Two-Way Deal
Jazz Have Agreed To Two-Way Contract With Elijah Harkless
As per Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, the Jazz have agreed to a two-way contract with Harkless. The 24-year-old went undrafted in the 2023 NBA Draft.
Harkless, a 6-foot-3 guard, has yet to appear in an NBA game. Instead, he has spent the last two seasons playing in the G League for the Clippers affiliate (2023-24 known as the Ontario Clippers, 2024-25 known as the San Diego Clippers).
After the 2023-24 G League season, Harkless joined the Saskatchewan Rattlers in the Canadian Elite Basketball League where he played for them for two months.
This season, Harkless has played in 16 games (six starts) for San Diego in the Tip-Off Tournament. Playing 26.8 minutes per contest, Harkless has posted averages of 15.2 points, 5.8 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and 2.7 steals. He has shot 42.0% from the field, 33.3% from beyond the arc, and 78.6% from the free-throw line.
Prior to playing professionally, Harkless played five collegiate seasons for three different schools. The first two years, he spent with Cal State Northridge. The following two, he played for the Oklahoma Sooners. His final college season in 2022-23, Harkless played with UNLV.
During his one year with the UNLV Runnin’ Rebels, Harkless was named to the All-Mountain West Second Team. With UNLV, he averaged 19.1 points. 5.1 rebounds, 3.4 assists, and 1.6 steals.
Utah Releases David Jones
The Jazz had all of their three two-way slots occupied meaning a player would have to be waived to make room for Harkless. That player will be David Jones, who agreed to a two-way deal with the Jazz in November.
Jones went undrafted in the 2024 NBA Draft out of Memphis. Much like Harkless, Jones played collegiately for three different schools. He also spent two years with DePaul and one with St. John’s.
Utah’s two other two-way players are Oscar Tshiebwe and Micah Potter.
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