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Oct 8, 2025; Houston, Texas, USA; /Utah Jazz forward Ace Bailey (19) dribbles the ball as Houston Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr. (10) defends during the second quarter at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

Utah Jazz’s Will Hardy Taking Unique Approach to Develop Ace Bailey

Originally posted on Utah Jazz on SI | By Jared Koch | Last updated Oct 9, 2025 10:30 AM ET

The Utah Jazz and their coaching staff have a tall task ahead of them for this season and in the future, in the case of developing fifth-overall pick Ace Bailey to the best of their abilities.

So far into their rebuild, the Jazz have shown a solid ability to develop that young talent, despite any ups and downs that have come with it.

Walker Kessler has emerged into a defensive anchor and starting quality center in year four. Year three guys like Keyonte George and Brice Sensabaugh have shown positive steps. Even sophomores like Isaiah Collier and Kyle Filipowski grew throughout the course of their rookie year, with likely more room to go heading into this season.

But when looking at the case of Bailey, the Jazz, and more importantly, head coach Will Hardy, he might be taking a slightly different approach to his development compared to what he's done across the past three summers.

When asked about some of his development strategy ahead of Bailey's first preseason game, Hardy said that over the offseason, he dove into old film of other star wings early in their careers, like Kevin Durant and Jayson Tatum, to gather perspective on what the early years of those talents and their development process looked like.

"I studied a couple of players this summer, and what their first couple of years in the league looked like, trying to understand what their pathway was," Hardy said before facing the Rockets.

"With guys like Kevin Durant and Jayson Tatum, we all know what it looks like now. And that can be distracting. So, it was good for me to go back, and watch a lot of that film, and try to understand what the beginning of that road looked like."

Think @utahjazz fans will enjoy this:

Will Hardy studied Kevin Durant rookie tape this summer to prepare for coaching rookie Ace Bailey.

"With guys like Kevin Durant and Jayson Tatum, we all kind of know what that looks like now. That can be distracting.”

Extended answer ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/SKoPRMGT0D
— Michael Shapiro (@mshap2) October 8, 2025

Durant and Tatum, while superstar talents now, didn't start out that way. They climbed up the NBA ladder in order to get to the high status they reside at now, done through both their innate ability, but also with some stable development to surround them early on.

For Hardy, he wants to facilitate that same growth for his own young wing. That starts by making the rookie's life easier.

"I think there's things to take away. I think understanding play types, and what that diet it. Maybe not as many isos when you're super young," Hardy continued. "But, what can we do to try to make Ace's life a little bit easier without making the team about Ace?"

"One of my biggest focal points in camp, and in preseason, and early in the season is: we can't overreact to anything that happens with Ace–– good or bad. I think we need to recognize, this is the beginning of his career."

To kick things off, Bailey had a standout preseason debut. He led the game in total points with 25 on over 65% shooting from the field, pairing with seven rebounds and three assists to make his presence felt in a big way on night one of the preseason.

Hardy, though, won't be overreacting to that early sample size. It's one day, and one game at a time, where that success likely won't be uncovered within his first few showings.

"He's a young man, and he's trying to learn and grow. If he has two great games to start, that doesn't necessarily mean that he's the greatest player of all time. If he has two tough games to start, that doesn't mean that he's not a good player. We have to help him stay focused on 'micro' things."

"So, I'm excited to get him out there, but there is a lot to learn from how other players began their careers, and what that road map looks like."

Bailey has a long road to get to where he and the Jazz want him to be, but with a coach like Hardy at the helm, he might be just the guy to get the most out of Utah's top-five pick.

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