SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Jazz missed the playoffs by just one game earlier this month. Generally, a team with as many injuries as the Jazz suffered, with as young of a core as the Jazz have, shouldn’t panic. The team also shouldn't make any knee-jerk reactions to a season during which, if a few more bounces had gone their way, they'd still be playing in the NBA’s postseason.

Unfortunately for the Jazz, they’ve overplayed the patience card with their fan base, and urgency to win now faces the roster for the front office. Their best player, Gordon Hayward, should he opt out of his contract next summer, will become an unrestricted free agent, meaning should he choose to sign with another NBA team, the Jazz will be powerless to stop him. At 26 years old, Hayward is just entering his prime, and will likely want to taste playoff success sooner rather than later.

While injuries certainly played a role in the Jazz shortcomings this season, a glaring lack of depth in light of those injuries likely hurt the Jazz just as severely, where even minor improvements to the back-end of the roster could have seen the Jazz still playing today.

Though the Jazz's most glaring injuries were on the perimeter, losing starting point guard Dante Exum for the entire 82-game season and Alec Burks for 51 games, a potentially more troubling stat emerged in the Jazz line-up. Despite missing a combined 41 games, Derrick Favors and Rudy Gobert still logged the third and fourth most minutes on the team.

With Trevor Booker and Trey Lyles, the two main backups in the big-man rotation, missing just five games combined, and Jeff Withey available for every game this season, there was a glaring mistrust of depth in the Jazz frontcourt rotation.

Lyles looked like a promising young player in his rookie campaign, displaying a potentially devastating offensive arsenal but struggling defensively on the floor. Booker labored to find his offensive game before the All-Star break, completing just 45 percent of his two-point field goals and just 25 percent of his three-point attempts, despite finishing the season strong. Withey averaged over nine points and seven rebounds in 10 spot starts for the Jazz this season, but otherwise struggled to find consistent minutes in Quin Snyder’s rotation.

In addition to finding more consistent backup minutes in the Jazz big-man rotation, better management of Derrick Favors' and Rudy Gobert’s minutes throughout the season could be key for a playoff run. Though Gobert has missed just 21 games combined over the past two seasons, lowering his nearly 32 minutes per game on the floor may be key to keeping him on the floor for more games.

Though Lyles will likely see an increase in minutes next season, having averaged just over 17 minutes per game this past year, his minutes alone won’t provide the Jazz with the depth in the frontcourt that they’ll likely covet.

With the salary cap projected to jump again next summer, several top targets may opt for one-year deals to sign even bigger contracts next offseason. For the Jazz to attract potential free agents, they’ll likely have to overpay a prospective target, either in yearly average or in number of years.

Big-man targets available

Luckily for the Jazz, there appear to be several realistic big-man targets available this summer who could come in to help the roster right away.

Coming off back-to-back All-Star appearances in 2013 and 2014, Joakim Noah had a disappointing 2014-15 season before this past year’s injury-riddled campaign. However, before the injuries, Noah was one of the league’s premier defensive big men, and a devastating passer. Jazz general manager Dennis Lindsey has often spoken glowingly about Noah’s game, and could have a realistic shot to land him this summer.

The Jazz would have to make a long-term financial commitment to a player on the wrong side of 30, coming off back-to-back disappointing seasons with injury concerns. But if Noah would be willing to buy into backing up Favors and Gobert in the starting line-up, the Jazz could limit his exposure to injury while gaining his All-Star experience and adding one of the league’s most prominent emotional leaders.

Zaza Pachulia surprisingly missed out on his first All-Star appearance this year by just under 15,000 fan votes, starting 69 games for the playoff-caliber Dallas Mavericks this season. Trading for Pachulia was an unheralded move this past summer, but proved to be one of the most valuable, giving the Mavericks a formidable frontcourt teammate for aging star Dirk Nowitzki.

While Pachulia would be welcomed back next season by Dallas, he’s an unrestricted free agent on the team that may have the front-runner star free agent center Dwight Howard this offseason. Having never made more than $5.2 million in a single season, the Jazz could realistically double his previous single-season high and give him several years to boot. Pachulia, a fan favorite, is a better than adequate backup, more than capable of starting in the case of frontcourt injuries.

Following the trend of big men spreading the floor, the Jazz could look for another shooter in the frontcourt with the addition of Marreese Speights. Previously an NBA journeyman, Speights struggled to find consistent playing time with either the Philadelphia 76ers, Memphis Grizzlies or Cleveland Cavaliers before landing with the NBA champion Golden State Warriors.

While Speights still fails to offer much in the defense or rebounding department, he shot a career high 39 percent from the 3-point line this season and can play either frontcourt position. He’ll likely cost less than either Pachulia or Noah, and is younger than both.

While there are more defensive-minded big men available this offseason that could fit with the Jazz current defensive model, Indiana Pacers free agent Ian Mahinmi, or Toronto Raptors center Bismack Biyombo who could opt out of his contract this summer, the Jazz could use a bigger body to fill in the role played by Joe Ingles next season.

When healthy, Favors and Gobert comprise one of the more formidable frontcourts in the NBA. But a lack of depth in the frontcourt saddled the Jazz with inconsistent playoff off the bench. While Lyles and Withey are almost certainly going to be back with the team next season, Booker could find himself suiting up in a new NBA uniform. Should the Jazz opt to make a frontcourt addition this summer, Noah, Pachulia and Speights are deserving of closer looks.

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