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Media Outlets Jumping on the Utah Jazz Bandwagon

By Ryan Aston

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The Utah Jazz hype train is running full-steam ahead with writers from CBS Sports, ESPN and Fox Sports all jumping on board in recent days.

After the dust had settled from the opening salvo of NBA free agency, the overwhelming vibe from the sporting press was that the Utah Jazz had put together a solid offseason. Given the team’s acquisition of George Hill, Boris Diaw and Joe Johnson, it’s not hard to understand why that was the prevailing feeling.

The Jazz had needed to improve their depth across the board, were lacking some experience on the roster and wanted players that were versatile and could play at different positions on the court. They also sought to solidify the point guard position and add more shooting into the mix.

In Hill, Diaw and Johnson, they essentially answered the call on all counts, thus boosting their stock among the national hoops press.

But now that the smoke has cleared and several weeks have passed since the excitement of free agency, where do prognosticators see the Jazz landing in the NBA pecking order? People like the moves that were made, but how good do they really expect the team to be next season?

Really good, apparently.

In his mid-summer, post-free agent bonanza rankings for Fox Sports, hoops scribe Brett Pollakoff has the Jazz ranked as the No. 10 squad in the Association.

Says Pollakoff–

"Seven-time NBA All-Star Joe Johnson was a nice free-agent pickup for the Jazz, as was the addition of Boris Diaw. The veteran presence will help a younger Utah Jazz team both on and off the floor, and the George Hill pickup should pay immediate dividends at point guard. Utah finished just out of the playoffs last season; this is the season the team needs to make the leap."

If the season played out in a way that reflected Pollakoff’s current rankings, the Jazz would finish sixth in the Western Conference.

He’s not the only one who has the team making a big jump next season after missing the playoffs by one game in 2015-16. ESPN Forecast, which aggregates the predictions of more than 200 NBA experts, has the Jazz taking the No. 5 spot in the West and finishing with a 45-37 record.

This was the comment on the Jazz in the ESPN rankings–

"With veterans George Hill, Joe Johnson and Boris Diaw joining a young and promising nucleus led by Gordon Hayward, Derrick Favors and Rudy Gobert, our forecast has Utah leaping from the lottery to the No. 5 seed. In addition to the stable of veteran support, Dante Exum — the No. 5 overall pick in 2014 — is set to return after missing all of last season with a torn ACL. A methodical squad, the Jazz ranked third in defensive efficiency after the All-Star break, while playing at the league’s slowest pace."

Recent offerings from CBS Sports seemingly have an even more favorable view of the Jazz roster, if that’s possible. Per their rankings of NBA starting lineups, the Jazz have the fifth-best starting five in the league, just below the San Antonio Spurs and one spot ahead of the Toronto Raptors.

Some of their thoughts on the Jazz front line–

"The Jazz are hoping for something similar to what the Indiana Pacers went through when they traded for Hill back in 2011. Pretty quickly, they became one of the most dominant lineups in the NBA with great length and versatility. The Jazz sport a better big-man tandem and a more reliable shooting guard than Lance Stephenson. This will be a top five lineup in basketball if it can remain healthy."

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Frankly, it’s hard to argue that the Jazz don’t have one of the better starting units in the NBA if you dig into the stats. Last season, the team’s first five with Raul Neto at the point guard outscored teams by more than seven points per 100 possessions.

After Jazz coach Quin Snyder made the switch to Shelvin Mack, that number jumped to 9.4 points per 100 possessions. And with Hill (or Exum) set to take the reins as the starting point guard this fall, that number could shoot up again next season.

The staff at CBS is even more bullish on the Jazz bench following the team’s offseason moves. According to their rankings, the Jazz have the best bench in the entire NBA. Not bad for a team that won just 40 games last season.

Here is what they had to say on Utah’s second unit; they notably cite Diaw as the key to it all–

"The biggest question they have is the return of Dante Exum, who missed last season with a torn ACL. How quickly will he adapt back to the NBA game and will his defense be as good as it was at the end of his rookie campaign?Meanwhile, Alec Burks is a Houdini around the rim, Joe Johnson gives them outside shooting and versatility, and Trey Lyles had beautiful development on both ends of the floor during his rookie season. But the key to it all could be Boris Diaw. If he’s the motivated Diaw that did whatever Gregg Popovich wanted him to do, this holds up as the top bench in the NBA. He’s everything they want in a backup big man and gives Quin Snyder so many lineup options with his versatility."

So, if we’re employing monkey math, the fifth-best starting lineup and the No. 1 bench aggregates to the third best team in the NBA, right?

NBA Finals, here we come! Amirite?

Alright, so something tells me the Jazz won’t show up in the three spot the next time CBS does their NBA power rankings, but clearly they’re high on what the Jazz GM Dennis Lindsey has done in building the team.

Next: Utah Jazz Announce Preseason Schedule

What do you think? No. 10 in the league? Fifth or sixth in the Western Conference? A top-three team in the league and budding title contender? Sound off below.

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