When Utah power forward Kyle Kuzma first committed to be a Ute, there was a lot of buzz surrounding him. The former four-star prep athlete from Flint, Mich. surrendered his senior season in high school to join the Runnin’ Utes as an early enrollee, a move that Ute center-in-waiting Jayce Johnson adopted, getting an early jump on his collegiate career.
Though he wasn’t able to play during this time period, he practiced with the team, building up his strength and knowledge of the game at the next level. Expectations were raised even higher for Kuzma, but during Utah’s Sweet Sixteen run in 2015, he didn’t meet them.
There were many instances during the 2014-15 campaign where fellow then-freshman Brekkott Chapman would be given the nod by Ute head coach Larry Krystkowiak, opting to leave Kuzma on the bench. That’s not to say he didn’t contribute, but Kuzma only averaged 8.8 minutes and 3.3 points per game last season — not eye-popping numbers.
Chapman was expected to solidify his role as the starting four-spot during the offseason, but much to the surprise of Utah fans, it was Kuzma who started getting his name called with the starting lineups once this season began.
And he didn’t disappoint. Though it was against inferior talent in SUU, Kuzma kicked off the campaign with a 23-point, 12-rebound performance and Utah fans got a glimpse of what the sophomore is capable of in the season-opening game.
He’s come up big in a number of other games this season, as well. Against Duke at Madison Square Garden in December, he finished with an important 21 points in the overtime victory. And in a four-game stretch extending from January to February, the power forward finished with 15, 16, 17 and 18 points, respectively.
But in the last four games combined, Kuzma has been in a slump, scoring just 15 points during that span. That was his worst four-game stretch of the season, and if the Utes were to have any success in the Pac-12 tournament this weekend, Kuzma needed to flip the switch.
Luckily for the Utes, he did just that. In his biggest contest as a starter — a do-or-die situation in the conference tournament — the sophomore forward stepped up in the biggest way possible, scoring 23 points on a near-perfect shooting night, 11-for-12 from the field. He also added seven rebounds and was a strong presence in the post beside Pac-12 Player of the Year and future NBA lottery pick in Jakob Poeltl.
His brightest moment came with 2:27 left in the game when USC was creeping back. Up by two points at 69-67, point guard Brandon Taylor found Kuzma in the corner behind the three-point line. The sophomore squared up, rose up and drained the shot — his ninth field goal of the game — to put the Utes up by five in a critical moment.
“This past week in practice, I made an extra focus to play hard and try to do the little things right,” Kuzma said after the game. “It’s good karma.”
Kuzma is a grinder. Ever since he’s stepped foot on campus, he’s been working tirelessly to become a better player and, eventually, maybe a next-level talent. When you say that out loud, some might be thinking, “Kuzma, a professional player — really?”
Well, yeah, why not? He firmly believes he can develop into that type of player, and draft analysts across the nation are starting to take notice. Mike Schmitz, a video scout for DraftExpress.com, tweeted out on his account on Feb. 27 that Kuzma is “one of the most underrated prospects in the country,” and I tend to agree with him.
Before his time is up on the hill, Kuzma will leave his mark on this Utah program. In fact, I think he will be a star. Once the seniors and Poeltl leave this year’s team to move on to bigger and better things, Kuzma will be the prime candidate to take over this Ute squad.
And I think he’s thinking the same thing.
@GriffDoug