The future of the Jazz is bright, and more
The Utah Jazz were once the most consistent team in the National Basketball Association. Playing in front of the league loudest crowd at the old Delta Center, Karl Malone and John Stockton led Utah to the playoffs every year between 1983-84 and 2002-03. Other than the first five of those campaigns, Jerry Sloan was the head coach.
While that run never resulted in a title – although they twice gave the Michael Jordan-led Bulls a run for their money – it was tremendous basketball on an annual basis in Salt Lake City. Unfortunately, the Jazz have not enjoyed any such success in recent years.
Since Sloan left the team in the middle of the 2010-11 season, Utah has not won a playoff game. The Jazz struggled mightily under Tyrone Corbin, ultimately leading to his dismissal after 3.5 seasons. Quin Snyder is now at the helm, and while Utah is going to miss the postseason for the third straight year, it appears there is light at the end of the tunnel.
At 28-36 in the rugged Western Conference, the Jazz have been fairly competitive this season without a terrific roster. Utah, along with the Memphis Grizzlies, boasts the best scoring defense in the West, allowing only 95.7 points per game. The problem has been offense, where the Jazz sit dead last in the conference at 95.3 points/game.
Gordon Hayward is the lone volume scorer for Utah, averaging 19.7 points/night. Hayward, in his fourth season out of Butler, has become one of the better shooters in basketball, but he needs more support around him. Derrick Favors is developing into a nice power forward, pouring in 16.3 points and grabbing 8.7 rebounds on average, but he’s the only other player Utah has who would be a starter on a top-level team.
The trio of Rudy Gobert, Alec Burks and Trey Burke are all nice rotational pieces with Burke being the best of the bunch, but they are better cast in smaller roles off the bench. The Jazz are young, have plenty of cap space and will be picking in the lottery of a loaded draft. This offseason is key for a team which needs to find that major star to anchor the rest of the roster. A true top-talent would make everything fall into place, with Hayward becoming the second option, Favors a nice third, and then a quality bench behind them.
Utah has struggled through the NBA wilderness in recent years. With a good offseason, that will change.
Race for 8th
The New Orleans Pelicans are not going away. In fact, Anthony Davis and the boys are currently in the eighth and final seed of the West with a 36-29 mark, a half-game better than the vaunted Oklahoma City Thunder. With Kevin Durant still on the shelf with a bad foot, this is a scare time for Thunder fans.
