Utah Jazz: Grading the team’s NBA free agency signings

Utah Jazz free-agent signing No. 3: Rudy Gay

The Jazz just made their bench a whole lot more potent when they signed Rudy Gay. He is a tremendous addition to the talents of last year’s Sixth Man of the Year Jordan Clarkson and the all-around ability of Joe Ingles.

Gay also presents a significant upgrade on Georges Niang who left during the free agency period. Gay has been a go-to scorer early in his career with the Sacramento Kings before he took a lesser role with the San Antonio Spurs.

His role with the Jazz is likely to be similar to that he played with the Spurs, providing floor spacing and a veteran presence to the team from the bench. The Jazz outfit is similar to the Spurs in they have a tremendous head coach and a veteran core who will look to maximize Gay’s input. Gay also will have a good impact on the second unit which was not good enough against the Clippers.

With that being said, Gay is going to have to hit the ground running. The Jazz are pushing for a championship and cannot afford to lose any ground on the ultra-competitive Western Conference. They seem to have improved their roster which is a key to staying at the top.

Grade: A+