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Utah Jazz: Best Move They Did, Didn’t Make

By Josh Cornelissen

Apr 10, 2016; Denver, CO, USA; Utah Jazz forward Gordon Hayward (20) celebrates with guard Rodney Hood (5) after a play in the third quarter against the Denver Nuggets at the Pepsi Center. The Jazz defeated the Nuggets 100-84. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 10, 2016; Denver, CO, USA; Utah Jazz forward Gordon Hayward (20) celebrates with guard Rodney Hood (5) after a play in the third quarter against the Denver Nuggets at the Pepsi Center. The Jazz defeated the Nuggets 100-84. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Utah Jazz filled out their rotation this summer to hedge against the injury setbacks that kept them out of last year’s postseason. Were their moves positives, or will they regret moves they didn’t make?

In sports, perfection is never a reality. The best quarterbacks in football complete less than 70 percent of their passes. The best goalies in hockey let one in every 20 shots into the goal. The most successful team in baseball history lost 36 games.

The goal is to win more than you lose, and more than the teams you’re competing against.

NBA offseasons can be viewed with the same lens. No team will have a perfect offseason, but they can strive to have the positives outweigh the negatives. Each team in the league is weighed on this scale, and today the Utah Jazz step up to be measured.

After narrowly missing the postseason last year, Utah entered this offseason seeking not only a playoff berth but a long playoff run. What was the best move they made? And what was the best move they left undone?

Related Story: 25 Best Players to Play for the Utah Jazz

Apr 2, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Indiana Pacers guard George Hill (3) dribbles against the Philadelphia 76ers at Wells Fargo Center. The Indiana Pacers won 115-102. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 2, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Indiana Pacers guard George Hill (3) dribbles against the Philadelphia 76ers at Wells Fargo Center. The Indiana Pacers won 115-102. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /

Best Move They Made: Trading for George Hill

Rather than taking another late lottery player this season, Utah made an unexpected move and flipped the 12th overall pick in the NBA Draft to the Atlanta Hawks in part of a three-team trade that brought in point guard George Hill from the Indiana Pacers.

Hill’s strengths as a player were a much better fit for the Pacers than Jeff Teague, as he is a point guard who plays excellent defense and doesn’t need the ball to contribute on offense because of his catch-and-shoot ability.

That makes him a perfect fit alongside playmaking wings, of which Utah has plenty.

Utah has high hopes for next season, and point guard stood out as both a point of depth and a lack of reliable production. Trey Burke and Raul Neto both have backup point guard as their end point, while Shelvin Mack is a high-usage ball-dominant guard who provides inconsistent defense.

Dante Exum is the long-term starting point guard for this team, but he is recovering from a torn ACL and is only 21 years old. His wingspan and athleticism fit perfectly with Utah’s wing players, and down the stretch of the 2014-15 season he showed he can be a lock-down defender.

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Exum’s loss for the entire 2015-16 season was a blow to the Jazz, and a situation they wanted to protect themselves against. With a rotation of Burke, Neto and Mack at the point Utah ranked as the seventh-best defense on a per-possession defense last season.

With Exum and Hill, two long defenders, Utah is aiming for No. 1.

Hill is entering the final season of his contract and if he leaves after next season the cost of the 12th pick in the draft may seem steep. But Utah will have Exum ready to take up the mantle, so the blow will be mitigated.

If the team can re-sign Hill to a team-friendly contract, either by an extension or in free agency next summer, then Utah will have 48 minutes of consistent point guard play moving forward.

Hill has been underrated for his entire career, even when he was putting up 16 points and five assists in Paul George’s absence two seasons ago. In Utah, he will fit right into the offensive and defensive schemes Quin Snyder has in place.

Hill is the point guard Utah has needed since Deron Williams left.

The Jazz will enter next season with high hopes and the muscle to back them up. If any team is equipped to slow down the Warriors, it just might be the combination of length, toughness, and depth that Utah can trot out across five positions with the addition of Hill.

May 17, 2016; New York, NY, USA; Utah Jazz president Steve Starks represents his team during the NBA draft lottery at New York Hilton Midtown. The Philadelphia 76ers received the first overall pick in the 2016 draft. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
May 17, 2016; New York, NY, USA; Utah Jazz president Steve Starks represents his team during the NBA draft lottery at New York Hilton Midtown. The Philadelphia 76ers received the first overall pick in the 2016 draft. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports /

Best Move They Didn’t Make: Adding Future Talent In The Draft

Utah flipped its first-round pick to acquire George Hill, a move that will almost certainly work out for them next season. That left them with a trio of second-round picks, at No. 42, No. 52 and No. 60. With a full rotation, Utah was going to be making picks for the future.

When the 42nd pick came around, a number of high-upside players remained on the board. Isaiah Whitehead, Demetrius Jackson and Isaia Cordinier went with the next three picks, all young guards with the potential to turn into NBA contributors down the road.

Paul Zipser, Petr Cornelie and Ben Bentil were all forwards with similar upside.

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Instead, Utah flipped that 42nd pick for the 55th pick and some cash. Now with three picks in the final nine, Utah drafted three seniors: Joel Bolomboy, a power forward out of Weber State, and two point guards — Marcus Paige (North Carolina) and Tyrone Wallace (California).

When a player enters the NBA at 21 or 22, it’s not a death knell for his development. But the largest arc of growth — both physically and from a skill standpoint — has already been eclipsed.

Paige is always going to be an undersized guard too small to guard 2s and too trigger-happy to run an NBA offense. The upside for such a pick is limited.

Adding players who can’t contribute right away is fine; the Jazz go three deep at every position and are full of recent draft selections up and down the roster. What Utah needed were players who will contribute in three and four years, and there is little reason to think they added any of those.

The final report on their draft will not be written for years, but from this vantage point they didn’t make moves that could — however unlikely — give them future rotation players.

If George Hill leaves after this season, the end result of this entire draft could be a few dollars and a filled roster spot for the Salt Lake City Stars.

In total, the Utah Jazz seem to have had one of the most successful offseasons in the league.

Hill, Boris Diaw and Joe Johnson are all proven veterans who fit needs on this roster without demanding huge amounts of playing time (Hill deserves it and will receive it, but none are a star-level player acquired through promises of minutes and shots).

On the opposite end of the scale, their missteps — not optimizing late second-round picks — isn’t the sort of move that cripples a franchise.

must read: Portland Trail Blazers: Best Move They Did, Didn't Make

This season the Utah Jazz are primed to make that leap up into the top half of the league, and their offseason moves will be a major driving force.

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