4) George Hill, Joe Johnson & Boris Diaw
I already put this one on Front Street, but it can’t be overstated — the offseason moves to acquire George Hill, Joe Johnson and Boris Diaw have fundamentally changed who the Jazz are.
For the past several years, the Jazz have been in a youth movement; accumulating assets, developing talent and laying a foundation for the future. With Hill, Johnson and Diaw in the fold, the youth movement is done. The Jazz are deep, they’re experienced and the future is now.
In Hill, the Jazz have finally solidified the point guard spot after previously languishing at the bottom of the league in terms of production out of position. Meanwhile, “Iso Joe” provides scoring punch and another option in the clutch and Diaw is the kind of versatile, playmaking big that every team covets.
The trio provides the Jazz with the depth they’ve lacked for some time.
Last season, injuries dealt the death-blow to the team’s playoff hopes. In 2016-17, the Jazz are built to withstand the bumps and bruises. Hayward may be out for the next several weeks, but look for Hill and Johnson to help fill the void. One of the bigs could go down and Diaw would step in or Johnson can slide to the four spot.
Who knows — maybe they even manage to stay relatively healthy this season. In that case, Hill, Johnson and Diaw help give the Jazz one of the strongest starting fives and best benches in the Association.
Next: A Jazzy New Look