Utah Jazz should aim for Northwest Division dynasty

Although it might be too much to ask that the Utah Jazz immediately become a league dynasty, they should definitely make it a habit to finish atop the Northwest Division.

Among the successes of the Utah Jazz during the 2016-17 season was the fact that the team won its first Northwest Division championship since 2008. Although  the change of the playoff format in 2015 which no longer gave division winners an automatic top-4 playoff bid has somewhat diminished the significance of earning the division title, it’s still an impressive feat worthy of recognition.

Since the creation of the Northwest Division in 2004, the Utah Jazz have won just three division titles. The Oklahoma City Thunder have dominated the division with five division championships (including a sixth in the division’s inaugural season when the franchise was still the Seattle SuperSonics).

The Denver Nuggets have three division titles, just like the Jazz (although they lost to Utah in the first round of the playoffs following their 2010 Northwest Division championship). Meanwhile the Portland Trail Blazers have just one and the Minnesota Timberwolves have yet to win the division since the creation of the Northwest, though they did win the Midwest Division title the year prior – their lone division championship in franchise history.

Meanwhile, Utah logged six Midwest Division Championships of their own, so finishing atop the division is far from a rare occurrence for them. And given Utah’s recent rise to relevancy in 2016-17, it’s a goal that they ought to continue to aim for.

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While it’s certainly asking too much for Utah to instantly turn into a league-wide dynasty like what the Golden State Warriors have built, they most definitely should be able to build a Northwest Division dynasty, much like the Thunder had from 2010-2016 (excepting 2015 in which Kevin Durant was out for the majority of the year and Portland won the division).

If Utah is able to stay healthy (a feat they didn’t accomplish last year but still won the division), there should be no stopping them from being the consistent winner of the Northwest year after year as they also compete for a top three seed in the Western Conference. Of course, they’ll more than likely need Gordon Hayward to remain in their ranks, but as long as he’s there a division dynasty ought to be within reach.

However, just because it’s within reach, doesn’t mean it’s going to be easy. Currently the Utah Jazz have proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that their the division’s best squad, however OKC is one star away from having a frightening group alongside superstar Russell Westbrook, the Timberwolves and Nuggets are young squads on the rise and the Portland Trail Blazers already have a star backcourt that finished last year hot and could very well improve dramatically.

Nevertheless, none of them can compare with the dynamic duo that is Gordon Hayward and Rudy Gobert as well as with the prolific depth and stifling defense that helped the Jazz will their way to the top of the division in 2016-17. Not to mention, while Utah’s division foes could very well improve this summer, the Jazz are also poised to make a leap forward due to internal player development and crafty offseason moves.

The Jazz proved last year that they’re a legitimate threat in the West once again and as long as they can keep up that current trajectory, their rivals in the Northwest will have a hard time stopping them from remaining atop the division for years to come.

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Unfortunately, despite the fact that the Oklahoma City Thunder had a long dynasty over the Northwest Division, they never were able to win an NBA title during that run. And we all know how that story ended up panning out (we’re looking at you and that 3-1 blown lead, Kevin Durant).

Nevertheless, history doesn’t always repeat itself and if Utah can lock down Gordon Hayward to play alongside Rudy Gobert for the long haul and continue to develop their intriguing roster, who’s to say that the Jazz couldn’t turn that division dynasty into an NBA Championship somewhere down the road in the years to come.

It may seem like a long shot now, given the incredible might of the Golden State Warriors, but even that squad can’t stay together forever. If Utah can remain elite by getting in the habit of finishing atop their division year after year, they may very well be able to find a way to break out into the championship picture, using their divisional dynasty as a springboard to the ultimate prize.