Utah Jazz: Four internal improvement focuses this offseason

Rudy Gobert solidifying offense

There’s no disputing just how important Rudy Gobert is to this Jazz team. Utah struggled through Rudy’s pair of knee injuries early in the season. However, his return to action helped the Jazz put the clamps down on defense and was the main catalyst for their incredible run to finish the season which saw them go from nine games under .500 (19-28) all the way up to 14 games above (48-34).

The way his presence turned the Jazz around could very well prove to be enough to earn him Defensive Player of the Year this season, despite the time missed due to injury. Whether he wins the award or not, though, it’s quite clear that he’s a monster for the Jazz defensively and about as steady as they come.

However, as was exposed in the playoff series against the Houston Rockets, Gobert has a ways to go to solidify his offense. He continued to have trouble handling passes on several occasions this season, and throughout the year and especially in the postseason, he would seemingly fail to have the necessary confidence to go up strong and finish at the rim, sometimes even failing to capitalize against smaller defenders.

As such, Gobert has to make it a priority this offseason to diversify somewhat on offense. Now, I’m not saying he needs to add a big-time jumpshot or become Karl Malone-esque with a variety of post-up moves. What I am saying, though, is that Gobert needs to take the things he does well and grow them even further.

Gobert often serves as the roll-man who dives to the rim in the pick-and-roll, but he needs to get better at handling passes in that situation, then finishing strong. Rudy could benefit significantly from adding simple pieces to his offensive game such as effective pump fakes, working to go up with enough strength to likely draw a foul and perhaps a few other around the basket moves such as a little hook shot or other weapon that will be hard to block.

Too many times against the Houston Rockets, we saw Gobert be too timid at the rim offensively for which he often paid dearly.

Gobert is awesome to have on the court for his defense, as well as for the several ways he affects the offense with his solid screens and mere size. However, in order for him to be even more effective and more of a dangerous weapon, he will need to focus dramatically this offseason on adding to his offensive repertoire and becoming more confident with the ball in his hands.

Gobert’s field goal percentage dropped from 66.1 percent in 2016-17 to 62.2 percent this past year. That’s a trend he’ll need to look to reverse as he transforms himself this summer into more of an offensive threat, not by completely changing his game, but by solidifying and growing on the things he already does well.