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The Utah Jazz have waived forward KJ Martin ahead of the 2025-26 season
Zach Wolpin is an NBA and NFL expert who's been betting on the league for over three years now. Wolpin has been a fan of the NBA and has been watching for a decade and a half. He covers the latest news and stories surrounding the league daily. His passion in life is watching sports and being able to share that through his sports writing. He has written about the NBA and other sports leagues through various media outlets over the years like Sir Charles In Charge, G-Men HQ, and TAP into South Plainfield. Before he became an NBA News Writer, Wolpin attended Montclair State University where he graduated in 2021. He studied Sports Media and Writing while in school.
All posts by Zach WolpinUpdated2 hours ago on September 24, 2025
NBA training camps will be underway in less than a week. Teams are preparing to make roster moves ahead of the 2025-26 season. That is true for the Utah Jazz.
League insiders announced that the Jazz have waived KJ Martin ahead of the upcoming season. He was on a non-guaranteed, $8 million deal. Martin has spent five seasons in the NBA and has bounced around since the 2023-24 season. We’ll have to wait and see if Martin finds a new home. Otherwise, he may have to rethink his career choice and leave the NBA.
The Utah Jazz waived KJ Martin after just one season with the team
KJ Martin Waived By Jazz https://t.co/JXk9pI8nWi
— RealGM (@RealGM) September 23, 2025
In the 2020 NBA draft, KJ Martin was a second-round pick by the Sacramento Kings. On draft night, Martin was traded to the Rockets, and that’s where he spent the three seasons of his career. The 24-year-old appeared in 206 games for Houston and made 59 starts. Early in the 2023-24 season, the Clippers traded Martin to the 76ers after just two games. Over two seasons, KJ Martin played in 82 games and made nine starts for Philadelphia.
That was until the 2024-25 trade deadline. KJ Martin was involved in a multi-team trade that sent Jimmy Butler to the Warriors. That deal sent Martin to Jazz. Upon arriving in Utah, Martin played in 19 games and made nine starts. He averaged 6.3 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game. In total, he played just 43 games in 2024-25 due to a foot injury.
The Utah Jazz have waived forward KJ Martin. He appeared in 19 games (nine starts) last season with Utah, averaging 6.3 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 1.5 assists in 22.7 minutes per game. pic.twitter.com/MXUoeTY1bo
— Michael Scotto (@MikeAScotto) September 23, 2025
Over his career, KJ Martin has played more of a backup role. His 82 games played and 49 starts in 2022-23 are still the highest in his career. Martin has played in 309 career games and has made 77 starts. Ahead of the 2025-26 season, the Jazz have waived KJ Martin. The team has now opened another active training camp spot. Additionally, the Jazz part ways with Martin’s non-guaranteed $8 million contract.
NBA insider Keith Smith reported that Utah could create up to $10.5 million in cap space by waiving KJ Martin. However, he noted that the team will continue to operate over the salary cap. The reason for this is that Utah has an $18.4 million traded player exception for John Collins. After being waived by the Jazz, KJ Martin will wait to clear waivers. If there’s a team that wants to add depth at forward, Martin is certainly a candidate.
