Star power forward Jaren Jackson Jr. only played three games for the Utah Jazz before being ruled out for the rest of the season. Following back-to-back wins over the Heat and Kings, he’s been shut down to undergo left knee surgery. According to a report by Chris Haynes on Thursday, the procedure is intended to ensure Jaren Jackson’s “long-term health” after the team discovered PNVS in his knee.
In what he called a “teaching moment” on X, regenerative medicine specialist Jesse Morse, M.D., broke down the diagnosis and what it means for Jaren Jackson’s short and long-term health.
“PVNS stands for Pigmented Villonodular Synovitis of the Knee,” wrote Morse. “Now it is often referred to as Tenosynovial Giant Cell Tumor (TGCT). PVNS is a benign but locally aggressive proliferative disorder of the synovium. It most commonly affects the knee (≈75% of cases), typically in adults between the ages of 20 and 50. So the knee in a 26-year-old fits the profile.”
Jackson’s form of PVNS was localized to the knee, which can lead to cartilage damage over time, triggering swelling, pain, and stiffness in the area. So while Jackson Jr. can seemingly play through his condition, getting the surgery now can prevent future problems in the area. The catch is that it will cost him the rest of this season, which falls perfectly in line with Utah’s current tanking strategy anyway.
“The long-term prognosis is good in that it is benign (non-cancerous), but it causes progressive cartilage destruction,” added Morse. “There is a risk of long-term secondary osteoarthritis. The good news is that early intervention improves joint preservation. Jackson’s season is over, but there is a chance he can return early in the 2026-27 season.”
On the injury front, Jackson Jr. should be able to return and play without limitations by early next season. Hopefully, with this procedure, he’s able to stay on the floor consistently and reclaim his place as one of the best defenders in the league. This season, in 48 games, he averaged 19.4 points, 5.7 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.1 steals, and 1.4 blocks per game on 47.6% shooting from the field and 35.7% shooting from three.
For the Jazz, this situation has worked out entirely to their favor. After being traded from the Grizzlies, Jaren Jackson Jr. is locked in for another four years and $154.5 million, meaning the Jazz are in complete control over his future. Whether they want to preserve his value for a trade or simply hold him out to earn a lottery pick, the Jazz have all the leverage on his status, and they are clearly building for the future rather than trying to compete right now. This procedure matches up with that timeline, while allowing Jaren Jackson Jr. to get out in front of a lingering health problem.
So while this isn’t the way Jaren Jackson Jr. thought his career would be headed, it’s arguably the best for all sides right now in what has become an unfortunate situation in Utah. As the team faces increasing scrutiny for its obvious tanking, it only puts more pressure on them to build a team that helps their former Defensive Player of the Year recreate the success he had in Memphis.
