The Utah Jazz are entering their third year of rebuilding a franchise that is still a couple of pieces away from being back in the playoff conversation. The biggest storyline as we get closer to the season opener will be Utah’s approach to winning basketball games.
Jazz head coach Will Hardy has the task of prioritizing player development while distributing minutes to veterans playing for their next contract. So, what’s Hardy’s mindset regarding juggling the different agendas? The topic arose when Hardy joined The Ryan Russilo Podcast, and Utah’s head coach revealed what he believes is the best approach.
“There’s a lot of days where it feels like you’re fighting a war on two fronts and that’s not always easy. I think the most important thing for me is the locker room is an echo system, and it’s a living and breathing thing, and we have to make sure that our team knows we are putting the best foot forward every day.” – Will Hardy
Appeasing the veterans has become much more difficult after this offseason. The Jazz signed Lauri Markkanen to a 5-year contract, leading one to believe that winning basketball games soon is essential. John Collins and Jordan Clarkson are still on the roster, which complicates matters. Both players are accustomed to getting playing time on the court, but the pair will also most likely not be a part of the future in Salt Lake City.
Clarkson and Collins were rumored to be on the trade block this offseason, but both players have contracts that aren’t team-friendly. The Jazz may have to wait to part ways unless they are willing to take a negative asset in return.
So, what does this mean for Utah’s future approach? That remains to be seen, but if Utah is committed to landing a top-5 pick in the NBA draft, then player development should trump the needs of two players who will most likely be traded before their contacts expire in Utah.
However, according to Hardy, the Jazz will be taking a best foot forward approach when it comes to distributing minutes. This is good news to the veterans like Collins and Clarkson, but bad news for the Jazz fan base that has their eyes focused on draft positioning in a loaded 2025 draft.
“Players that earn real minutes in NBA games, well they’ll play. We didn’t want to turn this into a feeling like — hey, we’re here for these couple of people’s development, and the rest of you are kind of like props around them. I just feel like that’s just a dangerous thing to get into in terms of what it feels like every day here. We want the team to know and feel like we’re trying to win every night.”
Giving your team the best chance of winning in the moment may feel good, but it hasn’t done well regarding draft positioning since the rebuild. Utah has enough rostered talent to keep them from a top-5 pick, and the oddsmakers agree. FanDuel has Utah projected to win 30 games this season. If that prediction holds, the Jazz would have the eighth-best lottery odds if we go off the 2023-24 standings.
Utah has shown that it knows how to tank games when it puts its mind to it. Even with a rostered Markkanen, Collins, Clarkson, and Collin Sexton, the Jazz went 2-14 to finish the 2023-24 season. The big question to start the season is, will Utah put the tank in motion starting with game one, or will they wait until after the trade deadline to let the foot off the gas? The regular season gets underway in less than two months.
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