By Sean Kennedy (@PhillyFastBreak)
I find it interesting to look at Utah’s roster because not too long ago, the Jazz and the Sixers were at very similar points. Both teams ended up with the top-3 picks in the 2010 draft, with the respective players drafted in that lottery since playing a large role in determining the future path of the franchise. Besides the Andrew Bynum fiasco, the Sixers’ selection of Evan Turner was the number-one reason they’ve set out on this current tanking path. That draft was their shot to get a superstar at the top of the draft and not only did they not get that star, they didn’t even get a viable NBA starter, making it easier to adopt a scorched-earth policy on the roster and completely start from scratch.
On the other hand, thanks to a mid-season trade of Deron Williams, the Jazz ended up with the player selected at #3 right in the middle of his rookie season, Derrick Favors. While Favors is by no means a perennial All-Star, he emerged as a very effective two-way player for Utah, a guy any team in the league would be glad to have. Utah displayed their faith in him two years ago by giving him an an extension for 4 years, $49 million. Whereas the Sixers were able to start from a blank slate, having Favors around (in addition to Gordon Hayward, taken with Utah’s first-round pick in that same 2010 draft) meant Utah would go about their rebuild in a more conventional fashion. The worry if you’re a Jazz fan is that the roster as constructed might top out as a very good, but not great, team. They may end up on the same treadmill of mediocrity from which the Sixers were determined to escape just a few years ago.
Still, there’s plenty of room for optimism in Utah. As recently detailed by Kirk Goldsberry on Grantland, the Jazz have been an elite defensive team since jettisoning Enes Kanter and fully handing the starting job over to Rudy Gobert. Utah getting Gobert by trading into the 27th pick of the 2013 draft may be the coup that transforms them from also-ran to true contender somewhere down the line. After all, the Spurs had Tim Duncan, but the reason they got their post-David Robinson rings was hitting on Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili very late in the draft.
The emergence of Gobert as one of the best defensive big men in the game lends Utah a clear vision of their path to success; namely, the dominant Pacers teams of 2-3 years ago. Gobert is the Hibbert-like big man anchoring the defense down low. Derrick Favors is the rugged two-way power forward similar to David West. And Gordon Hayward is the star scorer on the wing who’s also a pretty strong defender, a rough Paul George imitation.
The Jazz even have one more huge wild card with whatever 19-year-old Dante Exum turns out to be. As you might expect from having a 6’6″ point guard out there, the Jazz sport an absurd 85.5 defensive rating with Exum on the court since the All-Star Break. For context, the difference between that rating and Golden State’s top defense in the league (97.9) is higher than the difference between Golden State and the worst defensive team in the league (Minnesota at 108.4). If Exum ever puts a shot together to combine with his already-blossoming defensive prowess, watch out world. It’s also worth reiterating he’s only 19 and his main competition before this year was Australian high schoolers.
As with the Sixers, we’ll eventually see where the results of the rebuild take the Jazz. Maybe they’ll be a beacon for the merits of the conventional, piece-by-piece rebuild. Or maybe they’ll be another cautionary tale for a team that tops out as just pretty good without a top-10-type “superstar” and never achieves anything. There’s ultimately no right or wrong way to turn a franchise around as long as the moves made along the way are logically sound and follow a clear long-term vision. I think that’s been the case in both Philadelphia and in Utah. In time, we’ll see where each path leads.
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