Utah Jazz guard Isaiah Collier has one key aspect of his game that he's looking to improve heading into the 2026-27 NBA season: that's his defense.
Through the last two seasons, the Jazz have been pretty dreadful on the defensive side of the ball, having ranked in the bottom two teams in terms of defensive rating. So getting this roster refined on that side of the ball to pair with what should be an effective offense has been a clear focus heading into the new season.
And for guys like Collier to take that step forward in terms of their individual defense, it requires a bit of studying; watching other high-end perimeter defenders around the league to detect their tendencies and how they operate, and see how those factors can be added into his own game.
In Collier's case, that's led him down the road of studying one player in particular: Boston Celtics guard Derrick White.
"I've been watching a lot of defenders around my size and using my abilities, as far as strength and things like that, to try to emulate those types of defenders. It's about wanting to do it, and needing to do it," Collier said after a Jazz practice on Wednesday.
"I've watched a lot of Derrick White. It's about taking pride in guarding the basketball and doing it every single possession."
Isaiah Collier Looking to Take Major Steps Forward Defensively
It's hard to find many better players for Collier to try and emulate than White; someone who's been a three-time All-Defensive selection since his arrival in Boston, even reaching as high as sixth in Defensive Player of the Year voting last season.
Of course, making the strides to become a Derrick White-level defender overnight isn't going to happen for anyone. It took White several seasons before anyone ever considered him one of the top perimeter defenders in the NBA like he's seen as now.
However, a lot of White's prowess on the defensive end comes from the mentality that he brings to the table as a high-energy, high-intensity defender that most any NBA player can add themselves.
For Collier, that shift in mindset has been a big part of what's allowed him to double down on the defensive side of the ball, which is something that could help him find a bigger role in the rotation pretty quickly because of the Jazz's frequent lapses on that end for the past few seasons.
"My approach is different from previous years, for sure," Collier said of his mindset defensively. "I think it starts with taking pride in guarding the basketball and not wanting to be scored on. I'm also working on getting better with off-ball defense."
"It's been a whole different approach, approaching every day like it has to happen. That's what it's been so far."
Collier, who's been seen as one of the Jazz's more talented playmakers, ball handlers, and drivers on the roster, would be viewed as an even more pivotal part of the roster moving forward if he can develop into a plus-level defender––something he hasn't seen come to fruition just yet in his NBA career.
According to numbers from Cleaning the Glass, Collier allowed +6.0 points per 100 possessions, along with allowing a +1.8% effective field goal percentage when he was on the floor last season; both of which ranked towards the bottom of the Jazz's roster for the entire season.
So Collier making those tweaks on the defensive end are about as important as they’ve ever been. And when factoring in the Jazz's desire to be a better defensive team as a whole, and th the implications of Collier potentially playing for an extension as soon as next offseason, the emphasis on those defensive strides becomes even greater.
Time will tell if Collier's diligent film study will lead to some quality results on the floor as soon as the regular season gets underway next week. Yet, having a whole different mindset for his defensive intensity is certainly a step in the right direction.
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