Three reasons the Utah Jazz offense will be better than people think

So Many Weapons, So Hard to Game Plan Against

One of my favorite pieces about the upcoming Utah Jazz season came from Vice Sports’ Michael Pina where he drew an interesting comparison between the 2017-18 Utah Jazz and the 2014-15 Atlanta Hawks, which was a selfless and well-rounded squad that attained the first seed in the Eastern Conference by utilizing a balanced offensive approach that resulted in several players contributing on a nightly basis.

In that light, here’s what he had to say about the upcoming Jazz squad:

"Amazingly, instead of heading back toward the lottery, Utah will plow ahead with a roster that’s simultaneously raw, experienced, talented, smart, versatile, and deep in ways that run parallel with the 2014-15 Atlanta Hawks, a star-less 60-win juggernaut that excelled on both ends; what they lacked in elite individual talent, the Hawks made up for with a selfless offense that was impossible to game-plan against, and consistently competent in every other area. No Hawks player on that team averaged more than 17 points per game. But three averaged more than 15 points per game, and six players averaged in double figures. By comparison, last year two Jazz players averaged more than 15 points per game but only four averaged in double figures. That ratio figures to change after Hayward’s departure. Even if Utah’s ultimate potential without Hayward is now lower, there’s a benefit to unleashing lineups with no obvious weaknesses."

When looking up and down Utah’s roster and after seeing them briefly in action at the aforementioned scrimmage, I’m even more on board with what Michael Pina said here. The Jazz are an extremely deep team stocked with tons of talent, even if some of it is unheralded. The fact that both their first and second unit will be filled with capable guys will make them an absolutely difficult match-up for any team in the league.

On any given night, just about any player in Utah’s rotation could go off and have a big game. This will make the Jazz very difficult to game plan against as their offense won’t revolve around just a few select players, but will rather feature several capable options and a well-rounded offensive attack that will be very challenging for teams to guard.

The Jazz offense certainly doesn’t have any prolific superstars, but they have enough guys that can hurt opponents that they’re going to be much harder to shut down than they’re getting credit for.

Next: Utah Jazz: What to watch for during the preseason

The Utah Jazz will certainly have a lot of adjustments to go through this upcoming season, but with a savvy coach, a team-first mentality and an overwhelming amount of depth, the transition could turn out to be much smoother than many are predicting. And while Utah’s offense will certainly need to shape its own identity and get into a rhythm, it undoubtedly has the traits necessary to be more dangerous than many seem to recognize.

Combine that with Utah’s defense which very well should be one of, if not the best in the NBA in 2017-18, and that ought to make up quite substantially for any shortcomings that the Jazz’s already underrated offense may have.