Jazz's Mike Conley on Free Agency: 'I Did Love It Here and We'll See What Happens'
June 19, 2021
Coming off a season-ending loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday night in the Western Conference semifinals, Mike Conley Jr.'s future is one of the key storylines for the Utah Jazz this summer.
Speaking to reporters Saturday, Conley addressed his impending free agency.
“Obviously I can’t speak, look into the future what exactly will happen,” he said. “It’s actually like my first time being a real free agent, so it’ll be interesting, but I did love it here and we’ll see what happens.”
Expectations were high for the Jazz heading into the postseason. They posted the NBA's best record (52-20), net rating (+9.3) and set a new league record for most three-pointers made per game (16.7) during the regular season.
It looked like Utah was going to carry that success into the playoffs after winning six straight games following a Game 1 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies in the first round.
The Clippers reeled off four consecutive wins after falling behind 2-0, including a 131-119 victory in Game 6 after trailing by as many as 25 points early in the third quarter.
Conley made his first appearance in the series in Game 6. He missed the previous five games with a hamstring injury. The 33-year-old scored five points on 1-of-8 shooting and committed six turnovers in 26 minutes.
Utah already has $133.3 million in salary commitments for next season with Conley set to become an unrestricted free agent.
Conley was named to the All-Star team for the first time in his career in 2020-21. He averaged 16.2 points on 41.2 percent three-point shooting, 6.0 assists and 3.5 rebounds in 51 starts during the regular season.