Ben Anderson: Jazz at center of NBA’s wild western offseason


Save Story
Leer en español

Estimated read time: 4-5 minutes

This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.

SALT LAKE CITY — Monday night, the Golden State Warriors accomplished something no other team in NBA history has — starting the playoffs with 12 straight victories — as they swept their way to the NBA Finals.

The Warriors methodically dismantled the Portland Trailblazers in the first round, then the Utah Jazz, and lastly the San Antonio Spurs. They now sit with more than a week off to prepare for the winner of the Eastern Conference Finals.

The convincing victories will inevitably throw all of their victims into a tailspin this offseason, re-exploring how their rosters are built and what they need to do in order to be more competitive against this Warriors' lineup.

The Blazers have firepower, but lack size. The Spurs may be losing legend Manu Ginobili to retirement and will need Pau Gasol to opt out of his contract to have any hope of retooling their roster financially. And the Jazz are going to be fighting tooth and nail to retain Gordon Hayward when free agency opens in July.

Extending the look in the West, the Houston Rockets need help around James Harden, the Los Angeles Clippers appear to be in the midst of a cultural crisis, and the Memphis Grizzlies may be forced to reimagine their image.

The bad news for the Jazz is the Warriors appear to be at the beginning of a potentially dynastic run. The good news for the Jazz, outside of the Warriors, is the West is wide open. And while the Warriors are built to near perfection, their dynasty too shall come to an end.

Whether Hayward stays or goes, the Jazz will still have the makings of a bright future. Rudy Gobert is under contract for the next four years, and at just $25 million per season, he’s one of the NBA’s more affordable building blocks.

In addition to Gobert, the Jazz are ripe with young pieces, though they may still be relying more on potential than promise. Dante Exum should enter next season coming off a promising close to the playoffs and an offseason focused on improving on the floor, rather than rehabbing an injury.

Related:

Trey Lyles had a bizarrely poor sophomore season, but showed enough promise as a rookie for the Jazz to stay invested in his future. Rodney Hood dealt with a knee injury for most of this season, but has one season remaining on his rookie contract for the Jazz to examine if he fits as a long-term piece to the team’s puzzle.

Outside of Alec Burks, who has two years and nearly $22 million left on his contract, the Jazz are loaded with expiring contracts that they can look to move this offseason or let expire going into the summer of 2018 for added free-agent flexibility. Between Joe Johnson, Derrick Favors and Boris Diaw, the Jazz could shed close to $30 million in contracts next year.

Though the Jazz would take a significant step backward if they were to lose Hayward and Hill this summer, they would likely remain playoff competitive next year with a few veteran additions, even if they resisted making a major splash in free agency.

If the Jazz were to lose those staple pieces and waive the $7 million non-guaranteed contract of Diaw, they could have over $30 million in space this summer to retool. With a deep list of free agents, the Jazz could mitigate the damage left in Hayward’s absence, even if it meant overpaying to bring a player to Utah.

The Jazz finished the regular season tied with the Clippers for the fourth best record in the West. The Clippers appear to be on the verge of a total rebuild, while the aging Spurs who finished second in the West may be stagnant until they’re able to clear salary cap space.

While the Jazz face major uncertainty this summer, they aren’t alone in the West. Behind the Warriors, only the Rockets and Spurs appear as close to competing for a championship as the Jazz in the West, should Hayward choose to return to Utah. With Hayward in tow, the Jazz youth and flexible assets could give them an edge on those teams over the next few summers, just as the Warriors payroll grows too large to maintain.

Golden State will be a mainstay atop the West for the next several years, as they are likely to re-sign both Kevin Durant and Steph Curry this offseason. Meanwhile, nearly every Western Conference team appears to be in the buyer's market, hoping to build a roster worthy of competing with the Warriors.

Without Hayward, the Jazz must go back to the drawing board, though with Gobert on the roster, a total rebuild is out of the question. With Hayward, the Jazz should continue to vault up the West and may be the Warriors main competition over the next several seasons.


![Ben Anderson](http://img.ksl.com/slc/2556/255612/25561254\.jpg?filter=ksl/65x65)
About the Author: Ben Anderson ------------------------------

Ben Anderson is a sports contributor for KSL.com. Follow him on Twitter @BenKFAN.

Related stories

Most recent Sports stories

Related topics

SportsUtah Jazz

ARE YOU GAME?

From first downs to buzzer beaters, get KSL.com’s top sports stories delivered to your inbox weekly.
By subscribing, you acknowledge and agree to KSL.com's Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

KSL Weather Forecast