The J-Notes
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Utah Jazz could be bolstered by a unique preseason slate

By Ryan Aston

AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND - JANUARY 13: Kevin Lisch of the Kings reacts as he hits the deck during the round 15 NBL match between the New Zealand Breakers and the Sydney Kings at Vector Arena on January 13, 2017 in Auckland, New Zealand. (Photo by Anthony Au-Yeung/Getty Images)
AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND - JANUARY 13: Kevin Lisch of the Kings reacts as he hits the deck during the round 15 NBL match between the New Zealand Breakers and the Sydney Kings at Vector Arena on January 13, 2017 in Auckland, New Zealand. (Photo by Anthony Au-Yeung/Getty Images) /
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Preseason bouts with the Sydney Kings and Maccabi Haifa BC will give the Utah Jazz a different kind of competition.

There’s no denying the fact that the Utah Jazz preseason schedule will provide the team with some unique challenges. The slate begins with two games against international clubs. Namely, the NBL’s Sydney Kings and Israeli club Maccabi Haifa BC.

They’ll be followed by a home-and-home with the Phoenix Suns before the Jazz wrap preseason play against the Los Angeles Lakers.

This week, The J-Notes’ Hayden van de Maat dug into the preseason schedule and didn’t like what he saw. For starters, Sydney and Haifa are non-NBA teams, while the Suns and Lakers aren’t exactly the West’s crème de la crème. Also, Utah’s five games in nine nights slate is followed by over a week of downtime before opening night.

Hayden sees that schedule as problematic in terms of preparing for regular season hoops and I, for one, can follow the logic. Having said that, I’ve got a different take on the preseason schedule.

Atypical though it may be, I think this particular five-game run could bolster the team heading into the regular season.

Although Sydney and Haifa won’t feature a lot of elite-level players, you can bet on the fact that they’ll give the Jazz their best shot. Where an NBA squad would approach the exhibition game as little more than a warm-up, these teams want to make a statement.

They want to win.

It’s a point that was emphasized by Kings coach Andrew Gaze in the press earlier this week. “We’re going out there, we shake their hands and might want to get a couple of autographs,” he told The Sydney Morning Herald. “But once that ball’s tipped, we are fiercely competitive.”

Gaze continued —

"“They understand that we’re going to provide a very stern challenge. We’re not going to be submissive, we’re going to go out there and be very aggressive at both ends of the floor.”"

Meanwhile, Haifa is no stranger to competing against NBA talent. Last year’s Israeli Premiere League runner-up has played 13 games against NBA teams since 2010. That’s the second-most of any international club, with three more games coming in the days ahead.

There’s a reason why teams continue to look their way, and a handful of their players will have extra motivation. More specifically, they have the chance to audition for NBA teams. Such is the case for former Atlanta Hawks star Josh Smith, who joined Haifa for that very reason.

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The former All-Defensive Team honoree wants to prove he can still play at a high level. In doing so, he’ll provide something of a litmus test for Derrick Favors as a mobile, rangy big man.

Of course, you could say the same for the frountcourts of the Suns and Lakers as well. First, Favors and Rudy Gobert will have to contend with upstarts Marquese Chriss, Dragan Bender and Alex Len. They’ll be followed in short order by Julius Randle, Larry Nance and Kyle Kuzma.

All are big men with sky-high potential and unique physical gifts. And while we’re talking about non-playoff teams here, the youth and athleticism isn’t just limited to the bigs. Both teams feature a slew of young playmakers who will look to push pace against the Jazz.

The Suns accrued the second-most possessions in the league last season, while the Lakers were sixth overall in pace of play. I’m particularly interested to see how the Jazz cope in transition.

Dante Exum and Donovan Mitchell will also have intriguing backcourt match-ups with the likes of No. 2 overall pick Lonzo Ball, Jordan Clarkson, Eric Bledsoe and Tyler Ulis.

Now, the big break between the preseason finale and Game 1 of 82 could lead to some rust. However, I also see it as a chance for players like Favors and Alec Burks — each of whom are coming off injury-plagued campaigns — to keep from wearing down before we even get to real basketball.

All the while, Jazz coach Quin Snyder will run practices, work on integrating new players and continue to fine-tune his schemes, lineups and rotations.

Next: Ranking the Northwest Division ahead of preseason play

In the end, though, this is the preseason we’re talking about. If the Jazz are depending on these games to establish a rhythm, they may be in trouble. This time of year is really about discovery, and the Jazz should find out a lot about themselves during this preseason run.

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