The 2017-18 Utah Jazz: An Unexpected Season

The Utah Jazz exceeded expectations during their 2017-18 campaign. Let’s take a look back at some of the most memorable moments from this season.

As a Utah Jazz fan, the end of a season always comes with an inevitable bitter taste. However, a quick look back at the highlights of Utah’s season brings dozens of fond memories. This particular season was special; an unexpected journey from the brink of obscurity to the ranks of the league’s elite.

Excuse my Lord of the Rings/Hobbit nerdiness, but this was too hard to pass up. Bear with me, it will all come together. At least I hope it does.

For those of you not familiar with J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Hobbit,” (or the first chapter of its film adaptation, “An Unexpected Journey”) it’s the story of a sheltered hobbit’s adventure with a rag-tag bunch of dwarves. Led by a tall, wise wizard, the group set out on a quest to save their once-lost home.

Still having trouble connecting the dots?

In “The Utah Jazz: An Unexpected Season,” the tale featured a young, overlooked 13th overall pick in Donovan Mitchell. The rookie teamed up with a ragtag bunch of non-shooters and defensive specialists. Led by

a wizard

Rudy Gobert, the seemingly non-threatening group proved worthy to be considered among the league’s best, all while energizing their homeland in

Middle Earth

Salt Lake City.

See. Not so far off, right?

Anyway, as with all journeys, the struggles and low points along the way are what makes the end result so sweet. This Utah Jazz season, maybe even more so than any other, was no exception to that fact.

Let’s take a look back at some of the most “precious” — okay I’ll stop — memorable moments from this year’s Jazz campaign.