2014-2015 Season Preview Q&A: Utah Jazz
To help get ready for the 2014-2015 NBA season Pelican Debrief is going through each of the 30 NBA team’s with help from other Fansided NBA writers. Today we are joined by Clint Peterson, editor at Purple and Blues, Fansided’s Utah Jazz blog. Clint joins us to talk young bigs, Dante Exum, Gordon Hayward and more.
1. With Derrick Favors, Enes Kanter and Rudy Gobert all on the roster the Jazz have a bit of a crowded front court going forward. Do all three stay with Utah long term or does one move on somewhere else?
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Clint: Favors intends to stay in Utah maybe forever. Not only did he just sign a multi-year deal, but he also put down roots, buying his first home in Salt Lake Valley. It might be a little early to say anything definitive about Gobert — he’ll likely always be sporadic on offense — but his defensive and athletic ability will likely keep him in Utah for years to come as well.
Kanter has been the biggest question mark. Non-existent on defense and a poor passer in previous seasons, his rookie deal ends after this year, and with the new TV deal looming it would seem there’s little likelihood of him re-signing by the October 31st deadline for teams to extend. He’ll probably want to test the free agency market.
However, in the new Quin Snyder system, there seems to be new hope for the big Turk. Favors and Kanter often occupied the same space last season, cannibalizing each other in the paint, getting in each other’s way. Snyder has green-lighted Kanter from mid-range out to the three-point line — range we always suspected he had — making him more a monstrous stretch 4.
If Enes can quicken up his release a little bit, and continue to show a new defensive prowess showcased in preseason so far he could land a tidy little new contract in Utah next year.
2. What can we expect from Dante Exum this year? Will he get heavy minutes?
Clint: X, as his teammates in Utah are calling him (his Aussie mates called him D), will probably play plenty of minutes, albeit it off the bench, where we’ll see flashes of brilliance in between mostly unremarkable evenings.
He wasn’t drafted highly to help right away, barring injury, but simply because he’s one of those guys you don’t want to regret passing on later. Once Exum develops a reliable jumper it will be impossible to keep him off the floor. Until then, he’s just learning the ropes, having just finished prep ball.
3. Where will new head coach Quinn Snyder help the young Jazz roster most?
Clint: So far it’s been defense. The only constant in practice so far hes been transition D work. Every. Day. “Get back and build a wall!” And it’s been showing early returns. Of course, once the youngsters are playing starting top talent every night that could change, but for now improved defense for the worst D in the NBA last season is looking good.
On offense, this is the first time in the history of the Utah Jazz that they haven’t used a variation of the flex as their primary O. Snyder brought horns for his primary halfcourt attack, after looking first for a transition opportunity — think Mike D’Antoni’s Phoenix Suns Seven Seconds or Less — then what Quin calls “Attack at the 45.”
The new “Snyder System,” as I’ve come to call it, will continue to gain complexity as the roster relearns what it thought it knew about basketball and develops a chemistry of making the right read automatically. Snyder is a pick-and-roll genius as well, so look for lots of PnRs from the multiple ball handlers. This system suits the athletic youth the Jazz have acquired quite nicely.
4. Gordon Hayward earned a big contract this offseason in restricted free agency. What does Hayward have to do to live up to the deal?
Clint: Here’s a question that’s been overblown by quite a bit.
Really, what he already does, plus a little more efficiency in shooting, which he’ll get the opportunity for in the new system. Not many players have posted an all-around skill-set of stats like Hayward did last year in the history of the NBA: 16/5/5 per game. He shot well on open looks, something he’ll get loads of with horns sets, but, like most anyone, poorly when it was a contested shot, of which there were far too many last year.
And once that new NBA TV money kicks in Hayward’s deal will become a downright steal, taking up only about 18% of the Jazz’s cap space.
Bulked up and appearing to have gained lift and quickness at the same time, Gordon Hayward will be a terror on the wing this season for any opponent.
5. What is the best case scenario for the Jazz this year? Worst case? What do you expect to happen?
Clint: Best case would probably be something along the lines of what Jeff Hornacek did with the Suns last season.
Worst case would be getting worse than they were last year — 25 wins — while not showing improvement, on defense especially.
I’d expect a young core, that’s really nine deep, if you count a promising Trevor Booker, to post somewhere in the neighborhood of 28-33 wins in a yet again stacked Western Conference, biding their time for the future while they steadily grow together. Remember, the brass, staff and players are all in their relative professional NBA infancy yet.
Derrick Favors, Trey Burke, Gordon Hayward and Alec Burks should have fantastic moments this season. And keep a sly eye on Duke rookie Rodney Hood. He looks NBA ready already, will likely raise some eyebrows.
Clint is a practiced purveyor of basketball tales for such stalwarts as ESPN’s TrueHoop Network, the Utah Jazz and many independent establishments. Currently contributing for BallerMindFrame and Managing Editor of PurpleandBlues.com. Twitter troublemaker at @Clintonite33, accredited illustrator, attentive single father and frequent accidental celebrity stalker.