Much of the Utah Jazz’s offseason plans revolve around retaining their All-Star small forward Gordon Hayward. What should entice him to return?
Even while facing a second straight season of sustained injury woes, the Utah Jazz continued their climb into contention and surprised most of the league by reeling off a 50-win season.
For the first time in a while, things are looking up in Salt Lake City, but the Jazz face a crucial offseason. Many key assets will be hitting free agency, such as point guard George Hill or sharpshooting wing Joe Ingles, but the most important one is unquestionably forward Gordon Hayward.
Hayward made his first All-Star appearance this season as part of a breakout year. He averaged a career-high 21.9 points, 5.4 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game on 47.1 percent shooting, the per-game outputs of which, according to Basketball-Reference, only nine other players matched or surpassed.
Not much is known about Hayward’s desires in free agency, which has led to a wide range of speculation as to his possible destinations, with the Boston Celtics, Miami Heat, Los Angeles Clippers, and Indiana Pacers all receiving mention at some point.
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It doesn’t look like Hayward has put a lot of thought towards his free agency yet, as ESPN reports he hasn’t even decided whether or not to opt out of his deal or not.
There are several things he should consider when evaluating the positives of returning to Utah for the foreseeable future, five of which are outlined to follow.