FanPost

Situations to Keep an Eye On


Well, obviously this season won't turn out to be what some thought. I, for one, bought into what I saw in the preseason and raised my expectations to the 35 win range. That is still attainable, yet seems increasingly doubtful as we been disappointed for the last nine games in a row. To make things worse, I dont really see us finishing much worse than the 5-7 range for the lottery. In my opinion, Jazz should focus on acquiring assets for next year, not further into the future. Lets turn next season into one where we can compete for 40-45 wins and really make some progress. Trades will need to be made, and it will affect our shot at a top pick in this years draft.

Phoenix Suns Point Guards:

Now, I'm sure we all know that Horny has three young, talented Point Guards down in Phoenix and that he likes to play all of them. However, there have been rumblings that playing time is becoming an issue with at least one of them. Isaiah Thomas recently gave an interview which, more or less, implied that he was mislead about his role with the team when he signed. He has been dynamite for them in his extended minutes and has a very friendly contract. Now, if they decide one of the Point Guards need to be moved, we shouldn't assume it will automatically be Thomas. Bledsoe recently signed a large deal after months of strained negotiations with the team. It is possible that his relationship with the team suffered irreparable damage. Conversely, Goran Dragic seems primed to get a near-max deal in this upcoming Free Agency. If the team is happy with both Bledsoe and Thomas, Dragic could become expendable. Point Guard is a gaping weakness in our lineup and any of the three could infuse us with some energy, scoring, or even basic basketball ability (we lack all three).

Milwaukee Bucks Power Forward Rotation:

The Bucks have a glut of Power Forwards and good news for us, at least two of them can shoot! They currently have a 5-man big rotation of Larry Sanders, Ersan Ilyasova, Khris Middleton, Zaza Pachulia, and John Henson. Each of those guys are playing between 12-22 minutes a night. To make the logjam even worse, Jason Kidd has often played Jabari Parker at the PF position during games. Ilyasova is probably the most likely to be moved, and he is a great fit with the Jazz new offense. His shooting percentage is down from his career average this year, but he is posting a PER of 19.0. He is owed nearly $16 million over the next two years with a team-option third-year of $8.5 million. I can already picture a frontcourt of Ilyasova and Gobert wreaking havoc on second units across the league.

Restricted Free Agents:

Some of the best young players in the League will enter into RFA at season's end. With that, comes the possibility of a trade from each team. Reggie Jackson, Tobias Harris, and Jimmy Butler each would do wonders on our team. Jackson and Butler respectively, are currently on teams with a high payroll. Maybe they can be pried away by the Jazz. Harris, is having a great year and may be hard to get. However, things can change quickly because of injury, losing streak, etc. These three players should be monitored by the Jazz FO as the deadline approaches.

The Train-wreck that is the Brooklyn Nets:

Recently, rumors have circulated that the Nets are ready to deal Deron Williams, Brook Lopez, and Joe Johnson. Now obviously, Johnson is not really a candidate here and I doubt the Jazz would give Williams a hard look. Brook Lopez, on the other hand, could help us up front. He is arguably the best post-scoring bigman in the NBA, and has the ability to stretch the defense a little bit. He is owed $15 million this year with a player option of $16 million the following year.

Thanks for reading, feel free to add any ideas that I may have missed in the comments section,

Go Jazz

All comments are the opinion of the commenter and not necessarily that of SLC Dunk or SB Nation.