FanPost

Catching Up

Hey all,

I was catching up on some Jazz news here at SLCdunk when I came across a thread that was talking what people thought the best lineups would be. I thought this would be a fun thing to discuss now that the roster is finalized and the season is only a couple days away!!!!!!!

First, I would like to premise that I am only going to list 3 lineups I think will be key this year. Also, I am going to provide how I think the minutes will be distributed to each player for fun and explain why I think it will end this way. I encourage you to counter me or provide what you believe the best lineups are going to be.

First the minutes to each player based on what I have heard and read from Locke, Larsen, Practice interviews, etc.


PG 48 Minutes:

Rubio: 34 min

Mitchell: 14 min (Contingent on play and match up)

SG 48 Minutes:

Hood: 20 min

Mitchell: 10 min

Burks: 18 min

SF 48 Minutes:

Sefolosha: 17 min

Ingles: 23 min

Hood: 8 min

PF 48 Minutes:

Favors: 13 min

Johnson: 22 min

Jerebko: 13 min

C 48 Minutes:

Gobert: 33 min

Favors: 15 min

Udoh/Jerebko: 10 min (maybe Quinn tries 5 out??)


Players Total Minutes:

Rubio: 35 -Mitchell: 24 -Hood: 28 –Burks: 20 –Favors: 28 –Johnson: 22 –Jerebko: ~13 -Gobert: 33 min –Udoh: ~10

Explanation:

Now First off, I know the minute distribution shows 11 players and that is generally a lot for playoffs but I think it will be good for the regular season and keep the Jazz relatively rested and healthy.

I think due to the Exum injury, Rubio is going to have to be on the court as much as possible without tiring him out to much. 34 minutes is a lot but I and I think the jazz would rather have Rubio out on the court for longer than Neto. Speaking of Neto in my first draft I did include him in the rotation but I think Mitchell will just take those minutes if he plays with the right teammates.

At SG Hood I think due to his plantar fasciitis can’t really play more than 30 min. The interesting Part of the wings is that I felt as though I had to give AB minutes even though it didn’t fit, so I squeezed him in for 15 minutes. Now I know I am going to get killed on the Ingles minutes due to the contract he signed but hear me out. I think Ingles is an amazing player in the right role and when not overused. I think he is best at playing no more than 25 minutes a game, if you look at the playoffs when he played over 30 minutes he was tired and couldn’t hit a shot to save his life. So, I wanted to split his minutes with Sefolosha but I had to include Burks.

The Big guys I think are self-explanatory except for the Johnson/Jerebko/Udoh minutes. Johnson like Ingles is best utilized in bursts and saved for the playoffs, I think that Jerebko can really play so that’s why I say he gets some minutes at the 4 or 5. Udoh also is a fantastic defensive player and will earn minutes on this team.

Some final words, I know that this is not going to be the minutes distribution every game as it will be matchup/injury/heatcheck but I think at the end of the year barring a trade or injury will look something like this, with the caveat that I believe at some point Mitchell ends up getting 30ish minutes at some point in the season.

The Lineups:

The Napoleonic Fort (AKA starters): Rubio-Hood-Sefolosha-Favors-Gobert

Now the first thing everyone is going to notice is Sefolosha in the starting lineup. I think this is the way the Jazz are going to start due to the Exum injury which I’ll explain more of below in another lineup. I think the nick name explains this well. The starters I think should be a bludgeoning crew for the rest of the Starters in the NBA. With Favors, Gobert, Rubio, and Sefolosha teams will be hard pressed to score and I think turnovers will be a staple of this lineup. I’m also hoping the Rubio/Gobert pick and roll is something that will space the floor enough for Hood to get open threes or to drive and do his little pull up mid-range J.

Marvels: SpidaMitchell and Government Name (Main Bench): Mitchell-Burks-Ingles-Johnson-Favors

I think this is going to be a prominent bench lineup for the Jazz that includes Favors. Ingles should play a lot of minutes with Mitchell. He will be a good bench ball handler, floor spacer, ball mover to pair with Johnson and Favors. Johnson and Ingles I think are going to be perfect matches with Burks and Mitchell to allow them to play their games. If either one of Burks of Mitchell are struggling, Ingles can run a Pick and roll with Favors and Johnson to keep the offense going from the bench. The gravity of the three veterans will also open lanes for Mitchell and Burks to attack.

The Closers (NO EXPLANATION NEEDED): Rubio-Mitchell-Hood-Johnson-Gobert

This should be the lineup the Jazz close with most nights in my opinion. This Lineup has everything a closing lineup could ever ask for. First there is superb ball handling and passing with Rubio couple that with Gobert’s rolling to the rim, GEEZ that’s going to be great. We can’t ignore the good to potentially great spacing with Mitchell, Hood, Johnson.and last but most importantly big shoot makers in Hood, Johnson, and quite potentially Mitchell.

BONUS LINEUP: Mitchell-Burks-Ingles-Johnson-Jerebko

I just thought if this lineup for fun. Do you guys think it would be a good mix of players or not?

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