Utah Jazz to build new practice facility at Shops of South Town

SANDY, Utah — The Utah Jazz will soon be headed to the mall... for practice.

Following in the footsteps of its Smith Entertainment Group brethren, the Utah Mammoth, the Jazz announced plans to build a state-of-the-art practice facility at The Shops of South Town in Sandy.

Flanked by coaches and players, Jazz and Mammoth owners Ryan and Ashley Smith put golden shovels into the dirt where the new building will rise.

"There's really not a facility like this with the room to spread out," said Ryan Smith. "I recently toured Real Madrid, that's about the closest thing I've seen as far as a world-class campus. We'll be building the ability for the community to be a much bigger part of these brands."

Watch below as Utah Jazz announce new practice facility:

When asked what else he envisions in Sandy, it appears that the sky is the limit.

"There is a lot more that will be down here. Our phone is ringing off the hook, and it will get crazier today," he said. "You think about Junior Jazz, you think about all the things that don’t have a front door.  This gives them an opportunity as we start adding things as to what can be around here."

According to SEG, the new facility will include two basketball courts, as well as a locker room, working and training spaces and other amenities.

"We are going to work on a place where the basketball players and hockey players can congregate, hang out and probably play some ping pong," said Jazz president Austin Ainge. "And it’s also a place where Smith envisions the community gathering."

Utah Jazz

Construction is set to begin this fall, with the facility sitting next to the one used by the Mammoth on the east side of the mall. Although the NHL building was completed in just 13 months, Smith expects the NBA version to take up to two years to finish.

Utah Mammoth open new practice, training facility after just 13 months:

The Mammoth opened its 146,000 square-foot practice facility at the mall in September. Along with two rinks to allow the team to operate workouts on separate surfaces, the campus also houses the franchise offices.