Utah Jazz: One potential free agent target at each position

Power Forward – Mario Hezonja

I know what you might be thinking. Mario Hezonja? At power forward? Isn’t he a guard?

Yes, it’s true, he’s listed in several places as a guard/forward. But as the league continues to trend more towards small ball and “positionless basketball”, Hezonja has the versatility to play at the four-spot.

Some Jazz fans would likely want to see promising restricted free agents such as Jabari Parker or Aaron Gordon in this spot, but not only am I unsure about those guys, but I have a feeling their current teams are likely to match any offers sent their way. There are a lot of other true power forward free agents that I like, such as Nemanja Bjelica, Ersan Ilyasova and Trevor Booker, but the idea of Hezonja still intrigues me the most.

Hezonja is six-foot-eight, 218 pounds and particularly late in the season this past year, he played a good number of his minutes at the four-spot and was pretty effective with that opportunity. In the final seven games of the regular season, he shot 42.1 percent from three while putting up 13.9 points per game.

Obviously that’s far from large enough of a sample size during a mainly inconsequential time of year for it to hold any true merit, but chalk it up to one of the many stints where Hezonja has shown significant promise.

Although Mario was brought into this league with the expectation that he would be an electric shooter, his detractors are quick to point out that he hasn’t come anywhere close to living up to that hype. As just a career 41.8 percent shooter from the field and 33.2 percent shooter from deep, it’s certainly a valid point.

Still, the skill set and potential are there, and that’s exactly what the Jazz would need to view Hezonja as if they were to pick him up. Remember that it was just a year ago that people were calling Ricky Rubio‘s shot hopeless, yet the Jazz were able to help him have a career year from both the field and from deep, despite how poorly he started. Rubio’s improvement during the year was nothing short of incredible.

And if they’re able to repeat that with Hezonja, he could very well blossom into just the kind of shooter and stretch-four option that Utah needs. The framework is there due to his size and raw skills. If the Jazz can fill in the blanks, this could be a phenomenal addition.

Hezonja made just over $4 million this past year. If he finds himself with offers too far over that, the Jazz might be hesitant to add him (unless they use their mid-level exception as I suggested with Evans). However, when viewing his untapped potential in regards to both his fit and skill set, he’s certainly deserving of a long, hard look.

Not to mention, if Hezonja wants to expand his game and remain in the NBA, he would be wise to truly consider the Jazz, who have built a reputation as an excellent development squad. As an unrestricted free agent, he can go wherever he chooses, and it would be a good idea for him to prioritize fit and growth potential as his top considerations.