Via SLC Dunk
Key Players: Rudy Gobert, Rodney Hood, Ricky Rubio
Gordon Hayward took the 36 hour cross-country trip from Utah to Boston, signing a four-year, $128 million contract. After a career year in Utah, George Hill left for a three-year, $54 million contract to become a Sacramento King. This is the same Hill that was quoted in November saying, "I really like it here. My family likes it here. I've got some friends here. The city's been great for me so far, and it's a nice place to raise a family, so hopefully I get an opportunity to re-sign here if they would love me to be here." That guy just left for the Kings.
Yeah, the Jazz are dead. Wait, what? The Jazz aren't dead? The Jazz still have a playoff core and made solid offseason additions? Please, do tell.
The Jazz traded away a lottery protected first-round pick for 26-year-old point guard Ricky Rubio. Utah also added Thabo Sefolosha, Ekpe Udoh, and Jonas Jerebko through free agency. The last and maybe most important Jazz offseason addition was the 13th overall selection of Louisville guard Donovan Mitchell. Mitchell went on to be the Summer League's most talked about name--until the legend that is Lonzo Ball arrived. His 28 points per game has him tallied as the NBA's dark horse Rookie of the Year.
Best Case Scenario
Via NBA.com
Gordon Hayward led last year's Jazz team with a career high 21.9 points per game; he plays for Boston now. That leaves a large scoring load for Utah to fill. The most logical option to pickup that load is fourth-year guard Rodney Hood. Jazz general manager Dennis Lindsey stated, "We believe Rodney Hood can be a primary scorer. It's time for us to pivot, it's time for us to move on." Hood is Utah's rebound, and that rebound has the potential to be the NBA's Most Improved Player. Hood's third-year scoring stats are pretty similar to Hayward's ( Hood averaged 16.9 points per-36 minutes, Hayward averaged 17.4 points per-36 minutes). Although the 24-year-old guard showed signs of regression last season, but the hope in Utah is that the regression was an outlier season, plagued by durability.
Besides leaning on Rodney Hood, the Jazz's plan to fill the hole left by Hayward seems to be focusing on defense; smart plan, considering they have Defensive Player of the Year runner-up Rudy Gobert. Gobert simply stated the Jazz's main focus is, "defense". With Gobert's 8'0" wingspan anchoring the defense, Utah should have no problem retaining its top-five form. Add the quick defensive hands of Ricky Rubio and Donovan Mitchell and the Jazz have the potential to be the NBA's best defense.
Worst Case Scenario
Via NBA.com
The Jazz finally made the playoffs after five long years of barely missing out on the eighth seed. Losing their starting point guard along with their franchise player rightfully has Jazz fans worried of an April season finale. As aforementioned, Rodney Hood is the focal point of Utah's offense, but his past seasons don't exactly show lead scoring option. Hood can put up points but his less than 2 free throw attempts per game leads to inefficient scoring; his career average of 2.1 assists per game further adds to the doubt of Utah's new go-to-scorer. The lack of offensive help from key players Rudy Gobert (career average of 9.2 points per game) and Ricky Rubio (career average of 10.3 points per game) could lead to a large amount of eyesore games this season.
Prediction: 41-41; misses the playoffs in tough Western Conference.