Utah Jazz: Potential Wing Targets in Case Joe Ingles is Too Expensive

Utah Jazz swingman Joe Ingles, originally viewed as a reserve for this year, has come into his own as a lethal sharpshooter and glue-guy. Entering restricted free agency this summer, the Jazz may need to look at some potential replacements in case Ingles has outpriced himself out of Utah.

Well, if I told you before this season started that Joe Ingles would be this good, I would’ve been lying to you.

I was ecstatic by the Utah Jazz’s offseason acquisitions they had in the summer of 2016 of George Hill, Joe Johnson and Boris Diaw. This helped boost depth at the point guard, wing, and backup center spots which were being covered last year by Raul Neto/Trey Burke, Joe Ingles/Chris Johnson and Jeff Withey.

With all due respect to those guys, they should not have been playing as heavy a role as they were on a Jazz team trying to get in the playoffs. I anticipated the Jazz’s rotation to look like this:

C Gobert/Favors/Diaw

PF Favors/Lyles/Diaw

SF Hayward/Johnson

SG Hood/Burks/Exum

PG Hill/Exum

A ten-man rotation with Shelvin Mack and Joe Ingles filling in for garbage time, and Raul Neto, Jeff Withey and Joel Bolomboy being on the inactive list to fill in if necessary. Unfortunately we are already into April and the Jazz still haven’t figured out their best rotation due to injuries and inconsistent play. The J Notes’ own Hayden Van de Maat puts it best:

"Just three positions in the starting lineup have seen consistency and production throughout the season while the rest of the roster has been incredibly inconsistent. What is critical for the Jazz at this point is to find which certain combination of players can excel in and understand their role before they play their first playoff game."

A blessing in disguise of this injury curse has been Joe Ingles stepping up. Ingles won’t blow you away with his stat line of 6.9 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game, but his ability to be effective without needing the ball in his hands is a great value to any team.

Ingles, believe it or not, gets the lowest usage rate of any player on the Jazz, but still finds ways to contribute with the fourth most win shares on the team, and the fourth highest box plus-minus score on the team. He’s a knockdown three-point shooter boasting the second highest success rate from the great deep in the NBA, converting at a blazing 44.3 percent clip.

He’s been tasked with defending the opposing team’s best wing player, neutralizing their strengths while exploiting their weaknesses. Despite being nicknamed Slo’ Mo’ Joe, he is able to slide his feet just fine on defense and hold the opposing wing in check, whether it is Carmelo Anthony, LeBron James or Jimmy Butler.

A glue guy with this 3-and-D skill set is incredibly valuable in today’s NBA, and while Ingles has shown no inclination of wanting to leave Salt Lake, the Jazz may have no choice but to let him walk if other teams throw out a monster offer sheet at the 29-year-old Aussie.

Let’s take a look at some of the upcoming free agents who the Jazz could potentially target if the Jazz fail to match Ingles’ offer sheet.