SALT LAKE CITY — There’s a lot to be interested in as it relates to this year’s Jazz team, but in some ways, what intrigues most is the room for possibility within their rotations.

The Jazz’s roster is built upon versatility and optionality, which, in principle, means almost no lineup combination is untouchable this season.

We won’t visit all of them here, but in the same spirit of Andy Larsen’s piece from a summer ago, let’s take a look at five of the most unique Jazz lineups in advance of the 2017-18 season.

The “Depth” Lineup: Mitchell-Exum-Sefolosha-Johnson-Jerebko

The Jazz are among a short list of teams with the capability to deploy lineups comprised entirely of sixth and seventh men, which can be good or bad depending on your point of view. The utility of this particular lineup hinges on the shared development of Donovan Mitchell and Dante Exum.

If the pairing shows like they did in Summer League, it could be an underrated two-way backcourt given the amount of ballhandling and length it combines. If they don’t, it will be difficult for this arrangement to survive offensively in the halfcourt, even with Johnson’s individual shot creation and Jerebko’s stretch shooting.

Like a lot of the Jazz’s lineup combinations, the most obvious benefit this group offers is its switchability. Each member of the Exum-Sefolosha-Johnson trio measures at 6-foot-6 or 6-foot-7, which gives the Jazz the ability to switch three like-sized defenders across the perimeter positions while working alongside Mitchell’s 6-foot-10 wingspan at point guard.

Jerebko’s shortcomings as a rim protector are concerning, but on the whole, opponents will struggle to locate clean passing and shooting windows against the shared length of this unit.

Its biggest weakness, not dissimilar to most smaller lineups around the league, comes on the glass as none of the players included (Mitchell notwithstanding) have ever finished a season in the Top 35 in total rebound percentage for their position, per basketball-reference.com. All told, this is the type of lineup the Jazz will use sparingly throughout the season, but when they do, has the potential to be more effective than what you might expect by judging it on paper.

The Five-Out Lineup: Mitchell-Ingles-Hood-Johnson-Jerebko

The Jazz addressed a long-standing need for stretch shooting this offseason by signing Jerebko, who comes to Utah shooting 35 percent from three on 1.5 attempts per game for his career. Now in his age, Jerebko will occupy the minutes previously held by Diaw, but with a few differences, chief among them being increased shooting volume.

Consider: Diaw already held one of the highest 3-point attempt rates for a big man last season at 24.8, and yet, Jerebko still managed to double that mark by finishing at 49.6. Functionally, the mere threat of Jerebko’s shooting unlocks mobility for the rest of the lineup because the added spacing widens passing and driving lanes for those cutting to the basket and playing inside the arc.

The benefit of this lineup is that should the defense choose to collapse on these cutters, it risks allowing the Jazz’s best catch-and-shoot players (Ingles, Johnson and Hood) to fire away uncontested.

Like the first lineup, the effectiveness of this unit will rise and fall on Mitchell’s offensive development. If the rookie shoots from distance like he did in Summer League (a lowly 27.3 percent) instead of how he shot during his sophomore season at Louisville (a respectable 35.4 percent), then we may not see this lineup much at all.

The ’85 Bears Lineup: Rubio-Ingles-Sefolosha-Favors-Gobert

Of the Jazz’s myriad defense-first combinations, none is more stifling than this five-man group. Four-fifths of this lineup finished in the Top 12 for their position in ESPN’s defensive real plus-minus last season, while the lone exception, Joe Ingles, finished eighth in defensive rating among 38 qualifying guards and forwards, per basketball-reference.com

Gobert and Favors’ rim protection anchors this unit, as the two have combined to record a defensive rating of 98.3 when sharing the floor together over the last three years, according to stats from NBA.com.

But what really sets this lineup apart from others is the perimeter defense. Together, Rubio, Ingles and Sefolosha can work in concert to deny access into the lane, making them as effective at rim protecting as anything that comes behind them. Ideally, Sefolosha can chase the opposing team’s best offensive weapon as a full-time job, and otherwise, switch everything from 2-4.

The trio of Rubio, Ingles and Sefolosha also present increased opportunities for turnovers considering that each player ranked in the Top 20 for steal rate last season — something that may carry a potential benefit for the Jazz’s transition offense. There’s a lot of basketball yet to be played, but this group may yet challenge for the best defensive lineup in the league by year’s end.

The Point Ingles Lineup: Ingles-Hood-Johnson-Favors-Gobert

It’s possible that several iterations of the Point Ingles lineup are waiting in the wings, but this specific configuration is among its best two-way combinations. While unconventional, it would not be the first time Snyder has played lineups lacking a “true” point guard (though injuries played a large part in those decisions), specifically when he deployed Gordon Hayward or Alec Burks as a lead ball-handler in previous seasons.

After turning a big corner last year, Ingles currently stands as the team’s second-best passer and looks to be in position for an increased offensive role in the coming season. On the defensive end, the transition to guarding down a position for Ingles should be almost seamless, as he’s already shown an aptitude for bothering opposing point guards in the past.

With this lineup, something to watch for will be not just how it plays but when it plays. Given the basketball IQ permeating throughout this group, it has the potential to become a surprise crunch-time lineup if Rubio is played off the floor late in the fourth quarter (like he was at times in Minnesota).

On paper, the group appears to be one bullet short from being consistently effective on offense, but the same could be said about almost any lineup they’ll present. The idea behind this lineup is to have Ingles, Hood and Johnson space the floor, thereby opening opportunities underneath for Gobert’s rim-runs and Favors’ post game.

The Second Chance Lineup: Rubio-Exum-Burks-Favors-Gobert

Utah will have to be creative in how it manufactures offense this season, and one possible solution might be an increased emphasis on offensive rebounding.

Similar to Jeff Hornacek’s Phoenix teams, the three-guard look gives the Jazz multiple ballhandlers from which to operate the offense, and an injection of raw speed to stress opposing defenses. At its most basic level, this lineup is built around dribble penetration, meaning the majority of its production will come at the basket and free-throw line after drawing fouls, with misses from either location representing chances for an offensive rebound.

In terms of gang rebounding, the above lineup is as good as any the Jazz can deploy. Rubio has already established himself as one of the best offensive rebounding point guards in the league, and his backcourt running mates, Exum and Burks, led non-big Jazz players in offensive rebound percentage last season.

To that end, the Favors-Gobert duo is among the best offensive rebounding partnerships in the Jazz’s range, pulling down a combined 27.6 percent of offensive rebounds over the last three seasons.

For a team hunting for added offense, this lineup could unlock a handful of hidden points by virtue of creating extra possessions for themselves.

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