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SALT LAKE CITY — After the Utah Jazz's decisive win over Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder, much of Utah's fan base was in a dirge. The Jazz were simply winning too much.
Here's a sampling of some Jazz fans' tweets:
Jazz you should be tanking not winning — Justin Broyles (@Justin__Time__) January 8, 2014
> Jazz fans who are against tanking....don't be mad when the Lakers are winning championships with Jabari. > > — Caleb (@FortyUter) [January 5, 2014](https://twitter.com/FortyUter/statuses/419727018469494784)
> The jazz are winning to much. [\#disapointed](https://twitter.com/search?q=%23disapointed&src=hash) > > — Gavin ZoBell (@gavinzobell) [January 8, 2014](https://twitter.com/gavinzobell/statuses/420778157004713984)
Oh, how things change.
This was the fan base that lambasted the Golden State Warriors during the 2011-12 season when Mark Jackson led the Warriors to a 23-43 season, which landed them North Carolina upstart Harrison Barnes. For years, losing was the expectation for Golden State. Not so with the Utah Jazz, at least not until this year.
Thanks to early season injuries to rookie Trey Burke and Marvin Williams, the Jazz started the season 1-14. Since then, Burke and Williams have returned and have led the Jazz to an improved 12-25 record, pulling off signature wins against Oklahoma City, Houston and Phoenix. The Jazz now have the third-worst record in the league over struggling Orlando and the pitiful Milwaukee Bucks, whose plan this year was to go to the playoffs.
Utah's record speaks nothing to where the Jazz are as a team. They are fighting to stay in games — unlike Jackson's 2011-12 Warriors team — and getting good –to-great performances out of Gordon Hayward, Derrick Favors, Burke, Williams and Alec Burks on almost a nightly basis.
Winning is simply in the Jazz's blood with victories in six of their last 10 compared with the Lakers, who are 1-9 and 2 1/2 games ahead in the standings. As much as the Jazz would improve by throwing games and landing someone like Jabari Parker, the culture of the Jazz is winning.
Even though some Jazz fans are complaining of winning too much, the Jazz are winning as much as expected.
December and January's schedule was incredibly soft. The Jazz played in the East, then hosted Charlotte, Milwaukee and Cleveland and scored road wins against sinking ship teams in Sacramento and Denver.
Later, the schedule sees the Jazz playing more top-tier teams (after all, they are in the Western Conference), thus guaranteeing losses. But one constant is that the Jazz will play hard. If the Jazz reach more than 25 wins, it will guarantee three things:
1. Head coach Tyrone Corbin will get a new contract
The front office has placed a premium on this season in development of players and it's happening before the fans' eyes.
Corbin has done a great job in getting this team to play hard and stay in games that they have no business being in. Forget the lack of creativity and ingenuity of defensive or offensive schemes, he's teaching the very thing that more than half of the league (and the vast majority of the Eastern Conference) has a hard time doing: playing hard when there's not really anything to play for.
Plus, Corbin is coaching for his next job, and it's safe to assume that his next employer won't be looking for tanking on his resume. Despite what the fans think of Corbin, it's difficult to think of anyone else who represents the culture and spirit of the franchise more than Corbin.
2. Gordon Hayward will stay in Utah
Unless a team offers Hayward a maximum contract, the Utah Jazz will match it. Although there are rumors and speculation from Grantland's Bill Simmons, aside from a No. 1 pick in draft (or Miami's LeBron James), the Jazz will not trade away a player as good as Hayward. When Burke became healthy, Hayward was free to play off the ball, making him a primary target for Burke and easier for him to play the type of game he's meant to play.
Hayward's not a great one-on-one player, but his clutch shooting, solid passing and defensive playmaking is a major asset to this team that's worth developing and building upon. He's flanked by the ever-improving Favors and Burke, a rookie of the year candidate, and this will lead the Jazz to...
3. Embrace the San Antonio model
The San Antonio model works for the Jazz because there isn't a No. 1 guy on the Spurs. Tony Parker, Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili seem to take turns having monster nights. The Jazz can be the same way. Almost all basketball pundits believe that Hayward isn't an all-star caliber player, but with players like Favors, Burke, Burks and Williams, who can get hot at any minute, Hayward doesn't have to carry the load on his own like he tried to earlier this season to little avail.
Also, even if the Jazz squeak out 25-30 wins, they still have a great chance to get a great player in the lottery, furthering adding depth to their core group. With a couple more years of further development, the Jazz are poised to make a run in the West.
The notion may be unpopular, but its clear that the Jazz will continue to try to win. Chances are that they won't get to 30 wins and will still be a major player in the upcoming draft. Although the Jazz may not get to draft Parker, they will be able to get a major role player to help the team progress.
Although, general manager Dennis Lindsey may have constructed the Jazz as fans know it to have a hard time winning, but he hasn't built it to roll over and die. With their winning culture in place, the Jazz are poised for future success. Matthew Nanes is a writer by day and a singer/songwriter by night from Salt Lake City. He loves theology, punk rock, Utah Jazz and Mexican food. You can contact him at matthew.nanes@gmail.com
