After being waived by the Grizzlies, Chandler bounced around the G-League, where he has spent the majority of the past three seasons.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was so excited, because this is what I’ve been waiting on,\u201d Chandler said. \u201cThe grind of the G-League is very hard. It makes you sometimes doubt yourself to wonder, \u2018Do I still keep trying? Do I still keep pushing myself? Does anybody still have faith in me as a player?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Coming out of high school, Chandler was one of the top point guard prospects in the country, a five-star recruit who starred at Tennessee and earned second-team All-SEC honors as a freshman.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In Memphis, opportunity was limited. With Ja Morant entrenched as the franchise point guard and the Grizzlies boasting a deep rotation, consistent NBA minutes were difficult to come by.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you get waived as a rookie, it’s like, \u2018Dang,\u2019 and now you have to start the whole process over,\u201d Chandler said.<\/p>\n
Chandler spent the 2023 season with the Long Island Nets before joining the Raptors 905 in 2024. However it was until he joined the Delaware Blue Coats that Chandler started to regain his confidence.<\/p>\n
In 28 games with the Blue Coats this season, Chandler averaged 15.3 points, 9.0 assists (which led the G-League), 2.6 rebounds, and 1.8 steals.<\/p>\n
The time spent in the G-League helped Chandler work on his game and rebuild his confidence so when his next NBA opportunity came, he\u2019d be ready.<\/p>\n
\u201cThose guys gave me the confidence in myself and just telling me ways that this is going to get you here \u2013 picking up full court, finding teammates, let the scoring take care of itself,\u201d Chandler said. \u201cSo I feel like without all those guys, I wouldn\u2019t be here.\u201d<\/p>\n
That advice shows up in the way Chandler has played with Utah.<\/p>\n
Rather than trying to force offense or prove himself as a scorer, Chandler has leaned into the traits that can keep a guard in the league: pace, ball pressure, decision-making, and playmaking.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chandler has looked poised running the offense, has been active defensively, and shown a capability of creating shots for others, as well as himself.\u00a0<\/p>\n
![\"Chandler](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/01knar9n6j5rgrwnzea8.jpg\" "\\"Chandler")
<\/p>\n
Mar 30, 2026; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard James Harden (1) looks for a play against Utah Jazz guard Kennedy Chandler (0) during the first half at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images | Rob Gray-Imagn Images<\/p>\n
Chandler has taken full advantage of the minutes he\u2019s received from the Jazz as he averaged 14.4 points, 6.7 assists, and 3.4 rebounds in seven games with Utah.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Jazz have liked what they\u2019ve seen from Chandler so far, as they signed him to a second 10-day contract on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Whether this opportunity turns into a permanent roster spot in Utah or elsewhere remains to be seen, but Chandler is starting to show others why he belongs.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt gives me more hope, it gives me confidence,\u201d Chandler said. \u201cPlay as hard as I can, watch film, learn, and go from there.\u201d<\/p>\n
There are no guarantees in the NBA, and Chandler knows that better than most. After years of waiting for another chance, Chandler is making the most of this one.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Second chances are few and far between in the NBA. For Kennedy Chandler, he\u2019s showing why he deserves…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":696893,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[3785],"tags":[7,423,6,422,427,3972],"class_list":{"0":"post-696892","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-utah-jazz","8":"tag-basketball","9":"tag-jazz","10":"tag-nba","11":"tag-utah","12":"tag-utah-jazz","13":"tag-utahjazz"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nba\/116343654139065588","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/696892","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=696892"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/696892\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/696893"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=696892"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=696892"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=696892"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}