Utah Jazz: Three reasons for and against keeping Derrick Favors
The Utah Jazz face a tough dilemma regarding Derrick Favors this summer as there are strong arguments for and against keeping him in their midst.
If you’re unaware of just how pivotal this upcoming offseason is set to be for the Utah Jazz, it’s possible that you’ve been living under a rock. After three straight postseason appearances but zero advancements beyond the second round, it’s clear that for the Jazz to be able to compete with the best of the best, they need to make some enhancements.
Yes, they have some brilliant pieces in place such as young stars Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert as well as an incredible coach in Quin Snyder and ideal bargain role players such as Royce O’Neale and Jae Crowder, but by and large they still fall short of having everything they require to be a title contender. As such, this summer looms large as an important one for the Jazz in which the decisions they make in regards to improving could very well impact them for years to come.
One of the biggest decisions they face is what to do with big man Derrick Favors. Favors has seemingly been on the trade block nearly every year of the past few and many thought he’d be long gone in last summer’s free agency. Instead, the Jazz have held onto Favors and even brought him back last season with a two-year contract with the final year being a team option.
Every time the Jazz have opted to stick with Favors, he’s rewarded them with solid play and big moments. Make no mistake, keeping Derrick has been well worth the money as he’s helped the Jazz be a better team on several occasions.
However, therein also lies a dilemma. In order to get better this summer, the Jazz are going to have to upgrade and replace someone (or multiple someones). They can’t simply run it back with the same team as they did a year ago if they want to actually advance. In other words, some players are going to have to be dealt, let loose or moved on from.
By nature of the team option on his contract for the 2019-20 season, Derrick Favors is definitely one of those players that the Jazz have to consider parting ways with, hard though it may be. Teams don’t get better without taking risks, and though any transaction involving removing Favors from the team would be risky, in the right situation it could very well be worth it.
As such, I’ve opted to take a look at the Derrick Favors dilemma from multiple angles to discuss why the Jazz should and shouldn’t keep him next season. With that backdrop, let’s commence with the negative and look at three reasons why Utah should consider moving on from Favs this upcoming offseason.