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Gobert, Favors and Hayward NBA’s Next Big Three?

By Michael Tozer

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The “Big Three” is a heavily popular concept that’s been tossed around since LeBron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh all joined forces in the summer of 2010 at South Beach. Since then, the term has been synonymous with championship-caliber squads, as the common notion is that you need three players that could be valued as stars to do so. Do the Utah Jazz posses the NBA’s next Big Three?

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The term has grown in use now, since recent Championship-winning teams have all had a group of at least three players that were not only the best in the team, but could be considered as some of the best in the entire NBA.

Rudy Gobert, Derrick Favors and Gordon Hayward clearly aren’t at the same level of a James/Wade/Bosh for Miami, a Duncan/Ginobili/Parker for San Antonio or a Rondo/Allen/Pierce/Garnett for Boston, whom are three of the better combinations of the last decade. For each of these teams, by aligning stars of the league, championships have resulted.

Feb 11, 2015; Dallas, TX, USA; Utah Jazz forward Gordon Hayward (20) and forward Derrick Favors (15) and center Rudy Gobert (27) walk off the court during the second half of the game against the Dallas Mavericks at the American Airlines Center. The Mavericks defeated the Jazz 87-82. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

For the the Jazz, who’ve been long-starved of championships even through the Stockton/Malone era, the present is currently proposing an exciting future.

John Hollinger’s Player Efficiency Rating is a useful tool to determine the overall contribution a player makes to a team, as there contributions are summarized down to a single number. Currently there is only one other trio of players on the same team with PER ratings inside the top 40 inside the league.

It’s Utah, and I couldn’t believe it either.

According to Hollinger’s metric, Derrick Favors, who is ranked 12th with a PER of 22.61 should be a bonafide all-star. The news gets better for the Salt Lake City faithful, as Rudy Gobert (22nd) with a PER of 21.41 and Gordon Hayward (39th) with a PER of 20.21 are both borderline all-stars while looking at the metric.

The Player Efficiency Rating obviously isn’t the most accurate metric on the planet, as the only one of the three that could arguably be an all-star is Hayward. For Jazz fans though, seeing three of their young, talented players names up with the elite of the league provides the foundations for an exciting future.

It’s time for a quick look at each player individually, to see why exactly they’ll be likely to form the NBA’s next big three.

Derrick Favors

The rise of Derrick Favors towards an elite NBA power forward has thrown a whole new twist towards the Deron Williams trade, which is how he was acquired. Williams has struggled with his new roots in Brooklyn, while Favors has flourished, learning behind all-star Paul Millsap for two years, before assuming the starting position.

The large improvement in the game of Favors has largely come at the offensive end, where he’s established himself as the number one front-court scoring option for the Jazz.

In 59 games this year, Favors is posting averages of 16.4 points and 8.3 rebounds on 54.2% shooting.

Feb 25, 2015; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Los Angeles Lakers center

Jordan Hill

(27) attempts to box out Utah Jazz forward Derrick Favors (15) during the second half at EnergySolutions Arena. The Lakers won 100-97. Mandatory Credit: Russ Isabella-USA TODAY Sports

His improvement in his scoring output has come in the best possible way, not by taking more shots while hitting those shots at the same rate, but it’s an overall improvement in his shooting percentage all over the court.

From within 5 feet of the rim in the 2013/14 season Favors made 64.3% of these opportunities, while in the 2014/15 season he has increased his percentage of shots made in this region to 69.4%.

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The same goes for his shooting outside of 8 feet, which is a huge testament to the work Favors did with Karl Malone before the 2013/14 season, as he’s grown swiftly into a starting-calibre four since then. This season Favors has extended his game to knock down 36.8% of his shots from this range, which is up from 34.7% one year ago.

If Favors was ever able to grow into a potential member of the Utah Big 3 that he is today, he’d have to cut down on his fouling issues that were prevalent early in his career. Over his first four seasons in the league, he’d average 4.6 fouls per 36 minutes through a combination of lackluster and slow defensive movements, which contributed to less time on the floor.

This season, Favors is only picking up 3 fouls per 36 minutes, which has allowed him to play extended minutes on the court. This is partially due to Rudy Gobert, as Favors is no longer the primary defender of the rim, but Derrick has made an increased effort into going up straight against his opposition and getting into position quicker to make scoring more difficult for his direct opponent.

Gordon Hayward

Gordon Hayward, the undeniable main cog to Utah’s potential big 3 is having a terrific season as the leader of the Jazz. Hayward has stood up to the pressure after signing a huge 4-year, $63 million deal, with an arguable all-star caliber season.

In 34.9 minutes Hayward is scoring 19.5 points per game, as well as posting 4.9 rebounds and 4.2 assists. Among small forwards, this places him 3rd in scoring and assists, while he’s equal 16th in rebounding. He also places 8th in steals (1.4) and 11th in field goal percentage (45.4%) in the position.

Hayward’s innate passing ability makes him the largest threat for Utah on offense. Gordon is unique in pick and roll situations, as even though his natural position is the small forward, he runs the play with the poise of an elite point guard.

With these three in the starting line-up for the Jazz, only good things can happen. Hayward, Favors and Gobert are all still young, and are yet to reach their lofty potentials they’ve set for themselves already

His ability to handle the ball makes this Utah’s automatic go-to play. Hayward’s elite vision allowed him to spot Favors in the above play, slotting the ball through the smallest of gaps to provide the big man with an easy finish.

Hayward’s all-round game on offense, which even includes a terrific shot makes him difficult to stop. He takes his opponents on methodically, usually through the pick and roll. He either then finishes at the rim where he’s able to control his body in mid-air at an elite level to divert around opponents, or make his rivals pay with a deadly step-back shot from mid-range.

Defense was never the strong-point of Hayward’s but it is getting better. Prior to this season the best defensive rating he ever posted was 109, this year he’s down to 106. There’s still a long way to go for Hayward on this side of the floor, but he has made constant improvement, looking to stifle opponents with his long wing-span and athleticism.

Rudy Gobert

It’s a new question that must be answered. If the 2013 draft was re-done today, who would you take as the first pick?

Some might go with Victor Oladipo, while some could choose the Greak Freak.

But the vast majority within NBA circles would now take Rudy Gobert in a heartbeat, the 27th pick in one of the weakest drafts in recent history. Gobert however is a clear bright-point to an otherwise disappointing talent pool.

Mar 12, 2015; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert (27) boxes out Houston Rockets forward

Donatas Motiejunas

(20) during the first half at EnergySolutions Arena. Mandatory Credit: Russ Isabella-USA TODAY Sports

It’s the elite rim protection, the pick and roll defense, the blocked shots. Everything about the Stifle Tower (the greatest nickname in the league today) on defense screams to me as being an elite player. When we consider that he’s still 22 and in his second year, the possibilities are endless for Gobert.

It’s been largely accomplished through the work of the NBA’s next Big Three

When it comes to rim protection, Gobert’s impact in the paint is remarkable. He saves the most points at the rim per 36 minutes, saving 4.16, almost one whole point above Andrew Bogut (3.24), the next on the list. Next, he only allows opponents to shoot 38% at the rim, a phenomenal statistic, as he makes entering the paint daunting and difficult for opponents.

To combine with Gobert’s rim protecting ability is his frequent ability to deflect shots. Gobert is second in the league for blocks per 48 minutes with 4.67, only just behind John Henson with 4.83 per game, another player with an insane wingspan.

His offensive game is raw and limited to within 5 feet of the rim, but boy it can be fun. Gobert’s work out of the pick and roll to come up with easy dunks happens frequently. Gobert sets tough screens that are difficult for players to get around, then rolls quickly to the rim. It’s the sheer mix of length, strength and speed for a big man that has him score 1.16 points per possessions as the screener.

Gobert has an offensive rating of 123, while his defensive rating is equally impressive at 95 points per 100 possessions.

With these three in the starting line-up for the Jazz, only good things can happen. Hayward, Favors and Gobert are all still young, and are yet to reach their lofty potentials they’ve set for themselves already.

Utah just needs consistent guard play, and they’ll be great. Dante Exum is worth waiting on, while it remains to be seen how good Alec Burks will be when he returns.

The Jazz are beginning to form an identity thanks hugely to these three. On defense, they’ve held 12 of 13 opponents to 100 points or below, dating back to February 9.

It’s been largely accomplished through the work of the NBA’s next Big Three.

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