The Utah Jazz will be without two-time All-Star Jaren Jackson Jr. for six to eight weeks after the star forward suffered a torn medial collateral ligament (MCL) in his right knee, the team announced on Tuesday, October 27, in the latest cruel injury blow for a franchise that had built its season around a new-look frontcourt. The Jaren Jackson Jr injury, suffered in Monday night's loss to the Memphis Grizzlies, does not require surgery, according to ESPN, but it will keep one of the NBA's best defenders sidelined through November and into December, with a return expected around or after Christmas.
Jackson's night ended almost as soon as it had begun to take shape. Early in the second quarter of Monday's home game against Memphis, Grizzlies guard Ty Jerome drove hard to the basket, was fouled by Utah's Svi Mykhailiuk, and fell into Jackson's right leg. Jackson's knee buckled under the contact, and he immediately went down in pain, grabbing at the knee before teammates and Jerome helped him back to his feet.
Jackson stayed in the game for the next offensive possession, but he was soon checked out and limped back to the Jazz locker room. He was ruled out for the remainder of the contest, and Utah went on to lose 110-105 to fall to 1-3 on the young season. The news on Tuesday confirmed the worst fears from the night before: a torn MCL, the ligament on the inner side of the knee that helps stabilise the joint, with a timetable measured in weeks rather than days.
The Jazz announced that Jackson will be re-evaluated in six weeks. ESPN's Shams Charania and Tim MacMahon, reporting on the diagnosis, put the expected absence at approximately six to eight weeks and reported that Jackson will not require surgery. That distinction matters: a torn MCL can often heal without an operation, with rest, bracing and rehabilitation, but the recovery still demands patience, especially for a 6-foot-11 forward whose game depends on lateral movement, jumping and changing direction at full speed.
Markkanen's injury compounded a miserable Monday for Utah. The 2023 All-Star forward also left the game in the first half with a right wrist injury. X-rays were negative, but an MRI on Tuesday revealed a sprain, according to ESPN, and Markkanen is listed as day-to-day. For a volume three-point shooter, an injury to the shooting wrist is particularly awkward, even when the initial outlook is short-term, and Utah will be hopeful that he does not miss an extended stretch.
Jackson's injury is painful for Utah not only because of who he is, but because of how little the Jazz have actually seen of him since making one of the biggest trades in franchise history. Utah acquired Jackson from Memphis ahead of last season's trade deadline, sending three first-round picks to the Grizzlies in a deal that management hoped would lift the franchise back into contention after a lengthy rebuild.
Instead, Jackson made just three appearances for his new team last season before he was shut down because of a knee issue discovered after the acquisition. He underwent season-ending knee surgery in February, and reports later detailed surgery to remove a noncancerous growth in his left knee. Monday's game was only his seventh appearance in a Jazz uniform in total, and only his fourth game of the 2026-27 season.
When he has played, Jackson has delivered. Through his first four appearances this season, he was averaging 16.3 points, five rebounds, two assists and 1.3 blocks per game, according to USA TODAY's season figures, while in his three full games this fall he averaged 19.7 points, 5.7 rebounds and 1.7 blocks in 31.3 minutes per night, shooting 51.3 percent from the field and 41.7 percent from three-point range. Those numbers, combined with his reputation as one of the league's premier rim protectors, explain why Utah paid such a steep price to get him.
Jackson, a Michigan State product, won the NBA Defensive Player of the Year award in 2023 and has been named an All-Star twice. He was drafted by Memphis and spent the first eight seasons of his career with the Grizzlies, where he developed into a two-way force: a shot-blocker who could also stretch the floor, switch onto smaller players and anchor a defence. Utah's plan was to pair him with Markkanen to form one of the most formidable forward duos in the Western Conference, with Nurkic providing size and physicality at centre behind them.
That plan has barely had a chance to get started. Nurkic, the starting centre, has yet to play this season because of a partial plantar plate tear in the second toe of his right foot, an injury scheduled to be re-evaluated in early November. Jaxson Hayes also missed Monday's Memphis game with right shoulder soreness. With Jackson now out as well, Utah's frontcourt depth will be tested to its limit in the coming weeks.
The Jaren Jackson Jr injury lands at a delicate moment for the Jazz. Utah came into this season believing it had a playoff team, or at least one headed for the play-in tournament, after years of rebuilding. There was real confidence around the franchise that the Jackson-Markkanen pairing, plus a promising young core, could change the conversation around the team. A bottom-10 defence so far this season already suggested the adjustment would take time; losing the team's best defender for up to two months makes that path to the postseason considerably more difficult.
It also changes the immediate maths of the Western Conference race. In a conference where a handful of games can separate a play-in place from the lottery, a six-to-eight-week absence in October and November is not a footnote. It covers roughly a quarter of the regular season's opening stretch, and it forces head coach Will Hardy to rebuild his rotations, his defensive schemes and his closing line-ups around players who were expected to be supporting pieces rather than starters.
For Jackson personally, the timing is especially frustrating. He had already lost most of last season to knee surgery after the trade, and he had spoken through his play, rather than through public complaints, about wanting a clean run at a full season in Utah. Now, four games into the new campaign, he faces another lengthy rehabilitation, this time for the opposite knee, and another winter spent watching from the sidelines while his teammates try to hold the season together.
The Jazz confirmed the diagnosis in a team announcement on Tuesday, stating that Jackson has a torn MCL in his right knee and will be re-evaluated in six weeks. The team also confirmed that Markkanen has a sprained right wrist and is day-to-day. No return date beyond the six-week re-evaluation was given for Jackson, which is standard for this type of injury: the next check will determine how the ligament is healing and whether the timeline can be shortened or must be extended.
ESPN's reporting, from Charania and MacMahon, added the fuller picture that has shaped the reaction around the league: a six-to-eight-week absence, no surgery required, and a likely return around or after Christmas if the rehabilitation goes to plan. NBC Sports' analysis of the injury struck a similar note, calling it a concerning blow for a team that already had defensive issues, while noting that the absence of surgery was the one piece of good news in an otherwise bleak update.
Around the Jazz, the focus has already shifted to who steps up. NBC Sports pointed to greater opportunities for No. 2 draft pick Darryn Peterson and for Ace Bailey, two young players whose development could be accelerated by extra minutes and responsibility. Mo Bamba and Tony Bradley are among the veteran frontcourt options expected to absorb more minutes while Jackson, Nurkic and potentially Markkanen are unavailable. How Hardy balances that mix, between developing youth and trying to win now, will define Utah's next two months.
This injury matters for three reasons. First, Jackson is not a replaceable role player. He is a former Defensive Player of the Year, a two-time All-Star and the centrepiece of Utah's trade strategy. Teams do not trade three first-round picks for a player they can cover with a committee, and the Jazz's defensive identity was built around his ability to protect the rim, switch onto guards and erase mistakes behind him. Without him, Utah's defence, already in the bottom 10 of the league, has no obvious anchor.
Second, the injury exposes how thin Utah's margin for error really is. The Jazz's frontcourt was supposed to be a strength: Jackson, Markkanen and Nurkic, with Hayes, Bamba and Bradley behind them. Within a week, all three starters have been hurt or sidelined, and the depth chart has gone from a selling point to a question mark. If Markkanen's wrist keeps him out for any length of time, Utah could be without two of its three best players for a meaningful stretch of the season.
Third, the timing shapes the franchise's longer-term decisions. Utah invested heavily in Jackson with the expectation of competing now, not in some distant future. A long absence tests that timeline, and it tests the patience of a fan base that has waited through a rebuild for a team worth believing in. A strong showing from the young players in Jackson's absence could ease that pressure; a slide down the standings would only increase it.
The immediate next step is rehabilitation. Jackson will work through the early stages of MCL recovery, with the six-week re-evaluation as the first real checkpoint. If the ligament heals as expected, the Jazz and Jackson's medical team will set a return-to-play programme that rebuilds strength, stability and conditioning before he is cleared for full contact. A six-to-eight-week window points to a return in late December, around or after Christmas, though the team has not committed to a specific date.
Before that, two other injury updates will shape Utah's outlook. Markkanen's day-to-day status means his availability could change game by game, and the Jazz will monitor his shooting wrist closely in practice and shootaround. Nurkic's re-evaluation in early November will determine whether the starting centre can return to give Utah some size and physicality in the paint while Jackson is out.
On the court, Hardy must find a frontcourt rotation that can survive. Expect more minutes for Bamba and Bradley, a larger role for the young wings, and a defence that leans more on team concepts than on one elite shot-blocker. The Jazz's next few weeks will not decide their season on their own, but they will reveal whether this roster has the depth and resilience to withstand the loss of its most important defender.
Jackson has a torn MCL in his right knee and will be re-evaluated in six weeks, the Jazz announced. ESPN reports he is expected to miss approximately six to eight weeks, which would put a return around or after Christmas if rehabilitation goes to plan.
No. ESPN reports that Jackson will not require surgery to repair the torn MCL. Torn MCLs can often heal with rest, bracing and rehabilitation, though the recovery still takes several weeks for an NBA player.
Jackson was hurt early in the second quarter of Monday's game against the Memphis Grizzlies, his former team. Grizzlies guard Ty Jerome drove to the basket, was fouled by Svi Mykhailiuk, and fell into Jackson's right leg, causing his knee to buckle. Jackson briefly stayed in the game before checking out and being ruled out for the night.
Lauri Markkanen left the same Memphis game with a sprained right wrist and is day-to-day. Starting centre Jusuf Nurkic has yet to play this season because of a partial plantar plate tear in the second toe of his right foot, and Jaxson Hayes missed the Memphis game with right shoulder soreness.
Jackson was averaging 16.3 points, five rebounds, two assists and 1.3 blocks per game through his first four appearances this season. In his three full games this fall, he averaged 19.7 points, 5.7 rebounds and 1.7 blocks, shooting 51.3 percent from the field and 41.7 percent from three-point range.
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