With each celebrating a birthday in the last week, Utah Jazz stars Derrick Favors and Alec Burks are now officially closer to 30 than 20.
Just a few short years ago, the “Core Four” was all the rage in Utah Jazz land. The group, which consisted of youngsters Gordon Hayward, Derrick Favors, Alec Burks and Enes Kanter, was lauded as the unit that would take the baton from Al Jefferson and Paul Millsap and–one day–lead the team to success not seen since the Deron Williams era.
Fast-forward to now and things couldn’t be more different. Kanter is gone, Rudy Gobert is the team’s defensive centerpiece and Rodney Hood, Dante Exum and Trey Lyles have all been added to the fold.
Moreover, Hayward, Favors and Burks are all, well, older.
Happy birthday to my bro @dfavors14 pic.twitter.com/2El4DBqgdf
— Enes FREEDOM (@EnesFreedom) July 15, 2016
In the last week, Favors and Burks each celebrated birthdays. Favors, who came to the Jazz as a teenager in the D-Will trade, turned 25-years-old last Friday, while Burks hit the quarter-century mark and attained OG status on Wednesday.
As for Hayward, the Jazz captain turned 26 this past March.
So what does it all mean? If you ask me, it means that aforementioned core of players, the ones who have powered the Jazz machine since Jefferson and Millsap were allowed to walk in 2013, are all grown up. They’re no longer young as much as they’re “young-ish.” No longer will they be given free passes in the name of potential.
Results are expected.
After being one of the youngest and least-experienced teams in the NBA last year, the Jazz will be closer to the middle of the pack when the new season begins this fall. In addition to Hayward, Favors and Burks all being closer to 30 than 20 at this point, the younger contingent are all a year older (and more experienced) as well.
Throw in playoff-tested pros like Joe Johnson (35), Boris Diaw (34) and George Hill (30) and you’ve got a veteran club that is fully capable of doing some major damage in the Western Conference, and may even be able to put a real scare into contenders like the Golden State Warriors and San Antonio Spurs.
The team’s ultimate end goal of a potential NBA title run may still be a few years out of their reach, but make no mistake about it–the rebuild is complete.
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Whether or not the Jazz gang are, as Burks asserts, OGs, is a probably up for debate. I’m in my mid-30s and I think I’ve still got a few years before I can really take up that elder statesman mantle myself. Either way, the tides have changed in Utah.
The Core Four is now a Fab Five, a Super Six or the Magnificent Seven, depending on how you want to define it.
More than anything, the future is no longer the end all for Jazz Nation. With an old(er) core and wealth of experience in the fold, the here and now has become the focal point for the first time since Jerry Sloan was patrolling the sidelines.
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Jazz GM Dennis Lindsey and his brain trust laid out a long-term plan for the franchise, patiently allowed it to unfold over a period of several seasons and now, finally, the time has come to see whether or not that plan worked.
The last five years were about growth; the next five are about winning.