Jaxson Hayes Cleared to Return for the Jazz on Wednesday

The Utah Jazz are getting some reinforcement in the paint just in time for Wednesday's slate.

According to Underdog NBA, center Jaxson Hayes has officially been cleared to play after dealing with a shoulder injury.

"Underdog NBA reported: 'Jaxson Hayes (shoulder) available to play Wednesday.'"

A shoulder issue for a big man is always a little concerning. When your entire job description involves throwing elbows in the post and reaching for rebounds in heavy traffic, you kind of need both arms attached and fully functional.

Hayes being active gives the Jazz another athletic body to throw at the rim and immediately changes the math for Utah's frontcourt rotation.

If you were banking on one of the backup bigs getting a 35-minute cardio session tonight, you might need to adjust your expectations. Hayes returning means those extra minutes are officially evaporating.

The real test will be seeing how the shoulder holds up the first time he has to box out a 250-pound center instead of just doing resistance band workouts with the training staff.

For now, Utah gets their guy back in the number 11 jersey, and the frontcourt rotation gets a little more crowded heading into tip-off.