In 2022-23, the Utah Jazz were in a sweet spot. They’d entered rebuild mode the previous summer, trading Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert (and, famously, Royce O’Neale) for a combination of draft picks, pick swaps, prospects and rotation players. Their 10-3 start wasn’t sustainable, but it quickly became clear that Lauri Markkanen, the 7-foot sharpshooter they acquired in the Mitchell deal, was much more than a rotation player: He averaged 25.6 points on 64% true shooting, earning an All-Star appearance and the Most Improved Player award. Utah fell out of the playoff race and finished 37-45, but only after dumping several key contributors at the trade deadline and rolling out some ridiculous lineups down the stretch.
The Jazz’s future seemed bright because the possibilities seemed endless. They could hit the gas by trading for a star, build patiently through the draft, or do something in between. A couple of years later, though, it’s fair to wonder how much patience they have left. They’re coming off a 17-65 season in which Markkanen, now 28 years old, averaged 19 points on 57.1% true shooting while being paid 30% of the salary cap. They have yet to come to terms on a rookie extension with Walker Kessler, who has been in trade rumors for virtually his entire career. Nobody they drafted in 2023 and 2024 (Taylor Hendricks, Keyonte George, Brice Sensabaugh, Cody Williams, Isaiah Collier, Kyle Filipowski) has established himself as part of the core. They have a new team president, Austin Ainge, and it’s unclear whether No. 5 pick Ace Bailey will make him look brilliant or boneheaded. To borrow a metaphor from Sam Hinkie, they’ve planted a lot of seeds, but the orchard is far from full bloom.
The State of Play
Last year: In Year 3 of its rebuild, Utah didn’t wait to pile up losses: It was 10-36 at the end of January, after being 26-26 at that point in Year 1 and 24-25 in Year 2. In comparison to the late-season Jazz, though, the early-season Jazz were actually awesome. From the beginning of March onward, the team won 2 of its 23 games, with a…
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