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SALT LAKE CITY — Jared Butler, the still fairly fresh-faced second-year Utah Jazz guard, likened the summer to being on a season of "Survivor."
"Just seeing who gets voted off the island," he said, recalling the massive overhaul the franchise went through after last year's early playoff exit. "A little bit dramatic, a little bit of anxiousness, but a lot of things I couldn't control; I couldn't change anything about it. I tried to take peace in that."
For Butler and a handful of other Jazz players, the voting off the island isn't over. After waiving Saban Lee on Sunday, Utah has 17 guaranteed contracts on its roster and less than two weeks to slim that number down to at least 15.
So "Survivor: Utah Jazz" continues; it's just now the training camp version.
So where does Butler stack up?
The Baylor product has only played mop up minutes in both Utah's first preseason games. Against Toronto, he was 1-of-6 and finished with one assist in nearly nine minutes of play. In Portland, Butler bounced back with a strong 7 points on 2-of-2 shooting and two assists in just over six minutes.
So far, Butler hasn't been part of coach Will Hardy's rotation, but with so many players at relatively the same skill level, that may change quickly.
That's especially true since he was arguably Utah's best player during the team's open scrimmage at Vivint Arena on Saturday. He showed a rhythm and confidence that had been missing during his sporadic minutes as a rookie.
Some of his issues can be explained away by inconsistent minutes on a veteran-laden team. That, however, doesn't clarify his Summer League showing when he struggled to create separation and run Utah's offense against players that, for the most part, won't be playing in the league this season.
So with the obvious disclaimer it was merely a scrimmage, Saturday showed hope for progress from the guard who came to Utah with high expectations despite being taken with the 40th pick in the 2021 draft. He admits that his own lofty goals may have gotten in his way during his first season.
"Honestly, I'm just worried less about trying to prove I'm a certain player type and just more focused on doing the things that I know I can do well," he said.
He wanted to prove he belonged in the league; he wanted to prove he could be a starter, a star, even an All-Star. In the end, though, that may have pushed him further away from what got him to the NBA in the first place.
The good news for Butler is that many players have taken the next step when they realized something similar. Only a few NBA players excel at everything across the board; the rest survive in the league by being really good in a couple areas — or even a singular area.
For Butler, he was drafted for his shot and his handle, and that's not a bad base for a solid NBA point or combo guard. Those things stand out in training camp, especially to veteran center Kelly Olynyk.
"He's real talented, can shoot the ball, has great change of pace," Olynyk said. "Just trying to be able to kind of transition into a solid point guard. I don't know his back story or how point guard dominant he was when he was growing up or in college, but I think he can be really successful in this league.
"I love his change of pace, the way he gets to the rim, and he can find some people. And he's got a great head on his shoulders; that's always positive."
Olynyk said he's been trying to help Butler pick his spots better and figure out the NBA game — mainly because Butler keeps coming to him for advice.
"More times than not he's coming to you asking you questions, rather than you have to go to him and coach him," Olynyk said. "A bunch of times in two weeks, he's asking, 'What do you do in this situation? What do we do here? What do you do when this happens?' … Whether it's on the court or off or whatever, so it's been good."
Butler hasn't been the only one to get into the ears of the veteran players. After all, it's a rebuilding team full of players who are trying to cave out a spot in the NBA.
"These guys are seeking out advice and information, and coaching and learning opportunities," Olynyk said. "And there's something to be said about taking control of your own destiny — make sure that they get the most out every single day."
And try to stay on the island.
