SALT LAKE CITY — In an article for The Ringer, Jonathan Tjarks wrote about some of the NBA's "death lineups" — that is, small, versatile lineups around the NBA that have a chance of competing against the Golden State Warriors' infamous death lineup of Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Harrison Barnes (now replaced by Kevin Durant), Andre Iguodala, and Draymond Green. That lineup was ridiculously effective: in the regular season, the Harrison Barnes edition of the lineup outscored opponents by 47 points per 100 possessions when it was in the game.

One of Tjarks' five lineups was from the Utah Jazz, featuring Dante Exum, Alec Burks, Rodney Hood, Gordon Hayward, and Trey Lyles. Tjarks writes, "If those three", referring to Exum, Burks, and Lyles, "can live up to their potential, the Jazz might be the team in the West with the best chance of matching up with the Warriors in the playoffs."

Here's my take: I don't think that's among the best 100 lineups the Jazz can throw out there. It's missing two of the three best Jazz players, Derrick Favors and Rudy Gobert. The Jazz were outscored by 12.8 points per 48 minutes when Trey Lyles played center last year. The lineup could do well in transition, but isn't all that fast in terms of half-court decision making: Burks, for example, has a penchant for holding the ball for a beat before attacking, and Exum seemed very unsure of himself in his rookie season while navigating pick and roll. And defensively, that lineup would struggle: Hood, Hayward, and Lyles all played better defense against their matchups at their natural positions last year than the ones they'd play in this setup, per 82games.

But Tjarks is right when he says this: "The beauty of this season’s Jazz is how many different lineup options Quin Snyder has." So what are some of those intriguing lineups for the Jazz next season, in my opinion?

The lineup of long arms: George Hill, Dante Exum, Gordon Hayward, Derrick Favors, and Rudy Gobert

This is probably the best defensive look the Jazz can put out next season. Of course, it all starts with Gobert, a top-five defensive player in the league, a one man eraser at the rim that's also surprisingly decent in defending the perimeter. Favors has a 7-foot-4 wingspan, moves well in space, and also happens to be a top-20 rim protector in the league: if you move Gobert outside, Favors can still play in the middle to swallow up shots.

For a defense-first lineup, it might sound strange to start two point guards. But Hill and Exum are not typical PGs: despite being "just" 6-foot-3, Hill's wingspan is 6-foot-9. Exum's is a half-inch longer (Hood's wingspan was measured at 6-foot-8.5, in case you were wondering). Both Hill and Exum are experts at slithering around picks and using their length to bother ball carriers and cutters alike. And Hayward's a pretty underrated defensive player that actually allowed his starting SF counterpart to put up just a 12.9 PER last season, according to 82games. That's the best figure on the team.

The spacing lineup: George Hill, Rodney Hood, Gordon Hayward, Joe Johnson, and Boris Diaw.

The crazy thing here: the above lineup is a really, really good shooting lineup, right? Hill shot over 40 percent from three. Hayward and Hood are two of the league's most versatile wings who require you to stick with them on every screen, create shots for others, and can get a shot from everywhere. Joe Johnson is ninth all-time in league history in career 3-point shots made. Diaw is a center who used to play shooting guard.

But in making the very best spacing lineup, I excluded some pretty good shooters. Lyles is the obvious one. He shot 38 percent from 3 last season while he was still actually learning how to shoot the shot from NBA distance. Believe it or not, Burks has been a sneakily good jump shooter for the last few seasons when healthy: just by percentages, you can make a case he should be in this lineup. And of course, there's Joe Ingles, who is probably the very best open jump shooter on the team. Not in this lineup.

In the end, I decided I wanted Diaw's screening, quick decision making, and defense over Lyles' better shooting. It's possible I'm too enamored with Diaw in this stage of his career. And Ingles, while a better outright shooter than Hood or Hayward, isn't the team's best defender, either. Burks has good percentages, but doesn't shoot enough of them.

I am embarrassed at the shooting riches available here.

The yin-yang lineup: Dante Exum, Alec Burks, Gordon Hayward, Trey Lyles, and Rudy Gobert.

Yes, the Jazz players are not without weaknesses. But one cool thing about this roster is that you can counter those weaknesses with a teammate's strength.

So sure, Exum made a grand total of 20 trips to the free throw line in over 1800 minutes as a rookie. Why not give the ball instead to Burks, who throws himself at defenses in the paint to get to the line at every opportunity? And sure, Burks is a somewhat lax defender at times. Why not give his tricky assignments to Exum, who proved himself valuable defending top competition as a rookie?

Sure, Lyles has a penchant for giving up too easily at the rim, allowing attackers to finish over and around him so he can avoid the foul. Let's place him next to Gobert, a stretchy mutant man who blocks everything that comes near him. And sure, Gobert couldn't catch an inside pass last season. How about giving the ball to Lyles instead, so he can finish with a smooth jumper, surprisingly terrific floater, or easy layup after driving past his man?

And you might as well put Hayward next to them. He's pretty good at most basketball things.

The need-a-basket-now lineup: Alec Burks, Rodney Hood, Gordon Hayward, Joe Johnson, Derrick Favors

Is it the end of the game? Do you need points, like, right now? Here's the lineup I'm putting out on the floor. Of course, it features Hood and Hayward, the Jazz's two reliable scorers who traded clutch possessions last season (remember: it was the Jazz's defense that was bad in the clutch in 2015-16. The offense was really quite good).

It also features Johnson, so affiliated with scoring in one-on-one situations that his first Basketball-Reference nickname is "Iso Joe". Burks makes an appearance for his ability to trick defenses, especially by rejecting the screen and catching a leaning defender off-guard. And Favors made numerous clutch baskets last season, is a solid screener, and can fight for the rebound if necessary.

The crazy passing lineup: Raul Neto, Dante Exum, Joe Ingles, Boris Diaw, and Rudy Gobert.

This is the lineup I'm bringing to a skills-off against the Harlem Globetrotters. Neto's a crafty passer who showed off some terrific vision last season. Jingles can thread bounce passes with the best of them. And Diaw's maybe the best passing big man in the league, full-stop.

Exum and Gobert developed a fun relationship in Exum's rookie season. Exum kept throwing increasingly unlikely lobs to Gobert as if he was experimenting playing with someone as tall and lanky as the Frenchman. Gobert's a entertainingly ambitious passer himself.

By doing this exercise, you really start to get a feel for the Jazz's versatility. Versatility isn't everything, of course: skill matters more. But to put a diverse toolbox in the hands of Quin Snyder should lead to some difficult matchups for Jazz opponents next season.

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