The Utah Jazz missed the playoffs for the fourth year in a row in 2015-16, marking the longest streak since the franchise moved to Salt Lake City. However, it wasn’t all disappointment for the Jazz as a young core stepped up and proved it could compete for a postseason position in the loaded Western Conference. Basketball fans in Utah enter this season with a level of optimism unrivalled in previous years with a talented roster that might finally have what it takes to return to the playoffs in 2016-17. Should they finally to take that next step, though, there is going to be some questions that will have to be answered by the coaching staff.
Offseason Changes
The Jazz opted not to bring back Trevor Booker or Trey Burke, replacing them with key pieces that they feel will have a better opportunity of complimenting their core players. George Hill was brought in from Indiana to provide Utah with a veteran point guard to help both on the floor and from a leadership perspective while Boris Diaw was added from San Antonio in order to do the same up front. Joe Johnson still has enough left in the tank to think that he could be an important role player for the Jazz this season as well. Utah also signed versatile guard Shelvin Mack, who is very underrated at this point in his career. As you can see, there was a clear effort to get some veterans on this roster. There were a lot of young players who were depended upon last season and they weren’t quite ready. Now there is experience and leadership to support the young cast, and that should elevate the play of the entire team.
The franchise also landed Joel Bolomboy and Marcus Paige in the NBA Draft and both players have considerable upside. The blend of veteran talent and potential future stars made this an excellent offseason for the Jazz management team.
Strengths
The fact that Gordon Hayward, Derrick Favors and Rudy Gobert are entering their prime years at the same time means that the best is yet to come for a Utah side that is very close to breaking through. That trio could make up one of the best frontcourts in the Western Conference very soon and their blend of skill, athleticism and toughness will be tough to compete with. Rodney Hood will be a player to watch out for following a strong sophomore season while Dante Exum and Mack will provide a spark off the bench. Hill, Johnson and Diaw provide some much needed experience and leadership to a very young team that has the potential to take another major step forward this season. Hill should be a serviceable piece as he was underrated in Indiana running the point. He’ll be a steady hand at the position for the Jazz.
Weaknesses
Chemistry could be an issue early on with Hill, Johnson and Diaw joining Hayward, Favors and Gobert along with the rest of the young core that the Jazz has assembled. Even with the talent and leadership upgrades, Utah might not be an outstanding scoring team. The jazz struggled in fast-break situations last year and still lack a true superstar that will be given the ball in clutch situations. With so much talent in the Western Conference, Utah is still a step behind as a team with great potential but a lack of true star power at this point.
Outlook
Utah just missed out on a playoff spot last year when they finished ninth in the Western Conference at 40-42, one game back of the Houston Rockets for the eighth and final spot. The Jazz are primed to take a major step forward in terms of overall talent this year but their ceiling has to be capped by the talent on the teams ahead of them in the standings. Golden State, San Antonio, Oklahoma City, Los Angeles, Memphis and Portland aren’t going anywhere and Utah will be in tough to finish with a better record than any of those teams. Still, the Jazz has improved enough to think the playoffs are a realistic possibility and it will certainly be fun to see things come together in 2016-17.
Prediction: 3rd in Northwest Division; 7th in Western Conference
