SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Jazz are losing a lot of games, and for the rest of the season, it’s likely that this young team will continue to lose a lot of games. Let’s face it, they aren’t a good basketball team. That isn’t to say however, that they are devoid of talent, or that the Jazz aren’t exactly where they had planned to be.

While I’ve complained in the past about the long and slow process of the current rebuild, which seems to hang in the balance of each new draft pick, the Jazz young roster is showing signs of great promise.

Starting with the Jazz's most developed young draft pick, Gordon Hayward is coming into his own not just as a starter in the NBA, but as a legit star, with room to grow. Hayward is averaging career highs in points per game, rebounds per game, steals per game and free-throw attempts. The points, nearly 19 per game, highlight his improved ability to take his defender off the dribble, and his increased shooting percentages from last season are just under 4 full percentage points from the floor and the 3-point line.

The increased free-throw numbers are impressive as well and underline the rate at which Hayward is getting to the free-throw line. While shooting percentage is important, it is overshadowed by the rate at which a player gets to the free-throw line based on the fact that a free-throw is such a high-percentage shot. Hayward averages the 15th most free-throws per game of any player in the NBA, and does it despite taking relatively few field goal attempts, increasing his overall efficiency.

If Hayward continues this trend, he will be able to maintain not only his jack-of-all-trades reputation, but will become one of the NBA’s elite offensive weapons.

Derrick Favors, the Jazz's second longest tenured acquisition, is experiencing similar results to Hayward. Favors is projecting career highs in points per game, PER, a measurement of a players' per minute contributions, and true-shooting percentage, which accounts for a player's shooting from the floor, the 3-point line and free-throw line combined.

What is impressive about these numbers is they are all indicators of Favors’ improved offensive contribution. Through Favors’ first four seasons in the NBA, his offensive skill set often varied, from 20-point single-game explosions to single-digit scoring outputs that left fans and the coaching staff wanting more.

Entering this season, Favors had only 13 career 20-point performances. Through the first 22 games of this season, Favors has seven such performances. To offer some perspective, before this season, Favors averaged a 20-point game in only 4 percent of his outings. This season, that number has skyrocketed to 31 percent.

If Favors can consistently produce at this rate, he can become a valuable third option on a playoff-worthy team. The biggest issue for Favors moving forward is field goal attempts per game. There are too many games when Favors drifts in and out of the offense. He must keep the number of shots attempted high every game, as he scores at such an efficient rate.

Moving on to Alec Burks, the Jazz's 2011 draft pick, the results have been mixed but mostly positive in this year’s development. Burks, despite being a full-time starter, is averaging a lower point per game total than last season and has seen his true shooting percentage drop as well.

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Burks' shooting percentage inside of 3 feet, where he has earned the moniker of "Houdini," is at a career low of 55 percent. This would be more concerning if it was a career-long trend, but for now, I’m more inclined to believe the first quarter of this season has been an anomaly, and I would expect it to rise throughout the season.

It’s very possible that this drop in percentage is due to playing against opposing teams' starting line-ups, which generally feature better size and talent defensively down low.

On the positive side, Burks has increased his 3-point shooting percentage to nearly 38 percent, a very respectable number for a professional shooting guard, and is doing it on a career-high 2.4 3-point attempts per game. In addition, Burks is seeing increased averages in assists and rebounds per game, highlighting his development into a more well-rounded player.

Enes Kanter continues to be the Jazz's biggest mystery, both in overall role and future potential. Kanter is averaging career highs in points per game and PER, both clear signs of offensive growth. In addition, he’s introduced the 3-point shot to his game, which changes his overall potential greatly, expanding his shooting range and changing his role.

While his 32 percent 3-point percentage is rather mediocre, it should give fans confidence that at some point, with practice, he can become a viable 3-point threat. The problem with Kanter’s position on this Jazz team is his lack of a contract next season, mixed with the high ceiling of the Jazz's one true 7-footer sitting behind him on the bench.

Rudy Gobert has Jazz fans salivating with potential as a defensive stalwart and offensive garbage man who can contribute baskets with the use of only a few offensive possessions. In addition to having elite size at his position, he has above average instincts, and he seems to be progressing at an accelerated pace. At the age of 22, Gobert is one of the NBA’s more exciting young center prospects. Between Kanter and Gobert, the Jazz have two promising young players, stuck divvying important playing time and a ticking clock to make a decision on who to fully invest in.

Between these five players, and a backcourt of Trey Burke and Dante Exum brimming with potential, it’s clear the Jazz's young acquisitions, both through trades and the draft, are showing great promise for the future. While it’s fair to pine for victories, something Jazz fans haven’t seen for several seasons, at some point in the near future, these young pieces will pay off on their investment.

Ben Anderson is the co-host of Gunther in the Afternoon with Kyle Gunther on 1320 KFAN from 3-7, Monday through Friday. Read Ben's Utah Jazz blog at 1320kfan.com, and follow him on Twitter @BenKFAN.

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