Utah Jazz: Congratulations To Rodney Hood And Raul Neto

The Utah Jazz once again have players in the Rising Stars competition. This year it’s Rodney Hood and Raul Neto and all we can say is congratulations.

It starts from the top down.

For winning franchises, in business, sports, and in life in general, it always comes down to the leader. If the leadership is good then the team that is under the leader will follow suit. The leadership of the Utah Jazz organization looks like one of the few great leadership groups in the entire NBA.

If there’s one thing that the Jazz have done right with their team it’s that they’ve found a way to stay competitive not by bringing in free agents but instead working through the draft. The draft and the decisions from management are mainly why they’ve been able to accumulate 12 players at least 25 years or younger on their roster.

Look at the last two NBA champions in particular and you can see the effect of the NBA Draft. The San Antonio Spurs and Golden State Warriors both have built their teams around the draft. Klay Thompson, Stephen Curry, Harrison Barnes, Draymond Green, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, Kawhi Leonard and Tim Duncan have all been drafted by (or acquired through a draft-day trade) these respective teams and all of them helped their respective franchise obtain a championship.

For a small market team like Utah, and a state that isn’t known for much more than snow, it’s a difficult sell to most athletes to come and join their organization. However, because of the draft, the Jazz have found a way to bring in quality players and not worry about the free agents that aren’t coming in through the door.

The best news is that the Jazz have developed their talent each year and this year is no different because shooting guard Rodney Hood and point guard Raul Neto have both been selected to the Rising Stars Challenge. Each of these players has earned their selection and they’re going to continue to push Utah further in the future.

Congratulations to Neto

It was a tough sell to the fans of the Jazz having Raul Neto as their starting point guard.

Only a few months later and fans can’t imagine where they would be without his defense. Neto this season has stepped up as the head of the snake for Utah’s defense and he’s the first person who stops the basketball. Now stepping into the role that Dante Exum had last year, he’s actually played better than Exum.

Neto in his rookie season is averaging 5.6 points, 2.3 assists, and 1.4 rebounds per game in only 19 minutes of action per night. He’s also shooting decently from the three-point-line as he’s making nearly 37 percent of his attempts.

The biggest thing with Neto this season by far has been the way that he’s defended against the elite point guards in the league. For any player to have to defend guards like Chris Paul, Russell Westbrook, Stephen Curry and Damian Lillard is a tough task, let alone for a rookie. Neto hasn’t backed down a bit and his hard work is starting to pay off. What’s been fun to see is the way that Neto has started to become a better scorer throughout the year.

In the first three months in the league, Neto only scored in double figures three times. In the month of January alone Neto’s been able to score in double figures three times, so he’s gradually getting better offensively and that’s always a plus for a team like Utah.

Neto was a second-round pick in the 2013 NBA Draft (47th overall), but his game hasn’t been overlooked. Neto this season became the first Jazz rookie player to start during the season opener since the 1993-94 season. Additionally, he also became the first rookie point guard start since 1979-80.

Congratulations to Hood

Call him a chucker all you want.

Keep in mind you can’t be a big-time scorer without shooting the basketball. We’ve put a lot of emphases this month on Rodney Hood and how well he’s played during the absence of his fellow teammates including Alec Burks. Hood has stepped up to another level and his game has significantly gotten better from the beginning of his rookie campaign.

In the last two games alone Hood has played out of his mind. Against the Detroit Pistons, Hood scored 23 points on 50 percent shooting. Against the Charlotte Hornets, he followed up his hot shooting and scored 24 points on 50 percent shooting as well.

Hood is fourth in scoring on the roster behind the two snubbed All-Stars and Alec Burks (who he’ll likely pass within the next two weeks). Hood has scored in double digits in 31 games this season, including going for 20 points or more on six different nights. Hood has also scored 30 points or more in one game during this season.

For a second-year player to put up those types of scoring numbers where he’s not even featured as a primary option is scary because he’s just scratching the tip of his potential. Hood has played aggressively enough to lead the Jazz in scoring in six contests.

Congratulations

The beauty of having a strong management team is that they know how to get the best players on their franchise. With the selection of Hood and Neto on the Rising Stars Challenge, they will join Bryon Russell (94′), Andrei Kirilenko (02′, 03′), Deron Williams (06′, 07′), Paul Millsap (07′, 08′), Ronnie Brewer (08′), Derrick Favors (12′), Gordon Hayward (12′), Trey Burke (14′, 15′), Dante Exum (15′) and Rudy Gobert (15′) on the list of Jazz players that have participated.

The fact that Utah continues to keep putting their young players in this game is a testament to their organization.