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The Jazz moved from New Orleans to Utah in 1979. That’s 34 years of Utah Jazz basketball. What do fans have to show for it? If you judge success on your team winning championships, they have nothing.
Sure the Jazz have clearly had success. When two of the best players that ever played the game in John Stockton and Karl Malone anchor your team for almost 20 years, coached by a Hall of Famer in Jerry Sloan, you will witness some success. With those guys around for so long, it's no wonder the franchise has posted a losing record just twice in the last 30 years.
But those two losing seasons have come since the Stockton-Malone era came to a close. If the Jazz want to accomplish their biggest goal — to win a championship — the best way to get there is simple.
Lose.
Yeah, I know that is totally against the purpose of playing the game and is tough for a proud franchise and fan base to accept. But it’s the most realistic way for this team to become a contender, to give its fans hope that one day it can celebrate with a championship parade in downtown Salt Lake City.
This past season the Jazz put a patchwork lineup of free agent mercenaries together that you can argue resulted in a wasted season and held back the development of their younger players. Coincidentally enough, general manager Dennis Lindsey is starting to use the word “rebuild” when explaining the future. Well “rebuild” in the sports world means losing. This is something this small-market organization has been hesitant to do considering a bad team also means less money when it comes to selling tickets.
I believe this franchise is underestimating its fans, however. In fact, this past season the Jazz had their worst home attendance since the 2005-06 year. And this team was in the mix for the playoffs until the very end. The fans knew it was a lost year. Instead of watching selfish veterans audition for other teams, I believe they wanted to see the future on the floor. They wanted Gordon Hayward, Derrick Favors, Enes Kanter and Alec Burks to play.
If you are to take Lindsey at his word that day is finally here. It’s time to roll out the “core four” to see what they have. And most likely it will result in more losses than wins. And that’s OK. That means they will finally learn on the job and develop. And most importantly it will allow the Jazz to get a good lottery pick, which should result in an impact player or better yet a star — something this franchise can’t get through free agency. The last time they got one it was Deron Williams — the third overall pick in the 2005 draft. And while in the end it didn’t work out he did help lead the Jazz to a Western Conference finals appearance.
And while this year’s draft seems to lack sure-thing star players, next year’s is being projected to be the exact opposite. It starts with one-and-done players like the nation’s No. 1 high school basketball recruit, Andrew Wiggins, who just committed to Kansas, and Jabari Parker, who considered BYU before choosing Duke. It continues with this coming season’s Kentucky starting lineup that is supposedly loaded with several possible lottery picks.
Losing yet developing youth, getting a high pick in the lottery, and choosing the right player is how current Western Conference contenders San Antonio, Golden State, Oklahoma City and the Clippers were built. Just so happens all were playoff teams and three of the four reached the semifinals.
It’s finally time for the Jazz to do the right thing for the long-term future of this organization. Lose with the hope that one day it will result in the ultimate win Jazz fans deserve.
Kevin Graham co-hosts Gunther and Graham 3pm-7pm on 1320 KFAN. He is also the founder and editor of www.SportsMashup.com. You can follow him on Twitter @KevinGrahamKFAN and like him on Facebook (SportsMashup).
