Internal Improvement
Real-life basketball is obviously much more dynamic than a game of NBA 2K. But for sake of a metaphor, let’s pretend for a second that the Utah Jazz were merely rolling out the exact same squad as last year, with all of their ‘player ratings’ dialed in at the exact same mark.
If the Jazz remained exactly as they were in 2017-18 and maintained that high level over the course of the season, there’s no doubt that they’d be a playoff team. They did wrap up the year with a .829 win percentage after all. They won’t maintain that rate over 82 games by any means, but a team capable of such a performance is definitely capable of finishing with enough wins to make the playoffs.
But not only do the Jazz have the aforementioned continuity that I just spoke on, but they’re not going to just be rolling out a merely equal team as last year. They’re going to be rolling out a much-improved squad. Just imagine all those hypothetical 2K ratings taking a giant leap.
Donovan Mitchell has tons of experience under his belt now and a full offseason to grow. Rudy Gobert has gotten better every year. Dante Exum is fully healthy. Ricky Rubio improved vastly throughout the year last year and is within the same system and program this time around. The list goes on and on.
If continuity were enough to merely get the Jazz into the playoffs, their inarguable improvements will be enough to not only seal the deal, but should very well propel them even higher than a low/mid playoff seed.
The Jazz have hung their hat on growing organically. And as they continue to do so, they’re going to be an absolute force to be reckoned with in 2018-19.