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The Utah Jazz have signed Rudy Gay to a 2-year $12.1 Million deal.
Rudy Gay is signing a two-year, $12.1M deal with the Jazz, with a player option, his agents Raymond Brothers and Sam Permut said. https://t.co/yWjQ9HzQNy
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 3, 2021
Aside from having all the best Rudy’s in the league, this helps with some of the Jazz issues from last year with defense and size at the wing. Gay has had some really solid years in San Antonio and should be a nice upgrade over Georges Niang next season. Last season Gay put up a stat line of 11.4 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.4 assists while shooting 42% from the field and 38% from three. Gay also took 1.6 free throws per game shooting 80% from the line. The other stat that matters? Gay only started one game last season. He’ll come into the Jazz org knowing what role he’ll play. Much like the Joe Johnson signing from some years back, Gay can come in and do what he does best and that’s be an efficient scorer against second units.
Gay will also be a defensive upgrade to Niang. At times Gay has even slided over to the 5-spot. That versatility will be nice for the Jazz who need players that can fill gaps in the playoffs. Gay can also play big minutes in the playoffs if needed when the Jazz are looking for scoring with defense. Overall this is a big victory for the Jazz front office who were surely competing with other teams to sign Gay.
The Jazz still need to find ways to shore up there defense on the wing. Gay helps but he can’t do everything for you. We’ll see what Justin Zanik and the Utah Jazz still have up their sleeve as NBA free agency continues.