Lineup #3: The Jazz’s Bold New Look – Royce at the Four
Mike Conley, Donovan Mitchell, Bojan Bogdanovic, Royce O’Neale, Rudy Gobert
Depending on who you ask, this could very well be the bold new approach the Utah Jazz take in their starting lineup. And while I know it’s not far removed from the first lineup I’ve mentioned which is another potential starting group, it’s still an intriguing one. Towards the end of last season, Quin began to experiment with playing Royce O’Neale at the four-spot, and in the right matchups it actually worked out quite well.
O’Neale has already solidified himself as a formidable perimeter defender, capable of giving even the best of the best offensive talents trouble. And while some may question whether that can translate over against power forwards, it really isn’t that far out of the question. As a matter of fact, Royce measures in at 6-foot-6, 226 pounds while Jae Crowder, who logged the majority of Utah’s power forward minutes a season ago and produced some of the team’s most effective lineups, comes in at an identical 6-foot-6, and only nine pounds heavier at 235.
In other words, the difference isn’t all that great between the two. With a little bit of work, adjustment and focus, it’s completely within the realm of possibility that Royce could become Utah’s new stretch-four making this a dangerous and deadly bunch. For what it’s worth, of all the Utah Jazz lineups that logged over 10 minutes played together, the one with O’Neale at the four alongside Ricky Rubio, Mitchell, Ingles and Gobert posted the fourth best net rating.
That was a pretty small sample size, but in the postseason we saw Royce having success there as well. Factor in as well that he’ll now be playing alongside Conley over Rubio and Bogdanovic over Ingles in this lineup, and that’s a reason to believe there will be an enhancement as well. Not only that, but offensively Royce is also equipped to give opposing teams fits. He’s a far better three-point shooter than Crowder, Utah’s former stretch-four option, as he knocked down 38.6 percent of his triples last season compared to Jae’s 33.1.
It will take some growth from Royce and a lot of trust from Quin and his teammates, but this lineup could very well unlock a whole new dynamic for the Utah Jazz, especially if Royce takes the leap he’s expected to this upcoming season.
Outside of just focusing on O’Neale, though, not only would the Jazz have the already covered benefits of Conley, Mitchell and Gobert, but this one would also allow for Bojan to play in his more comfortable small forward position. Based on what we know now, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Bogdanovic paired alongside Jeff Green quite frequently as the three and four. However, if Royce busts out as the new stretch four, allowing Bojan to take that slot could also help him reach his utmost potential.
I still like the idea of Bogey and Joe together at the three and four, but there’s no denying that there’s a bit of overlap in skill set there. Permitting Bogdanovic to thrive at the three while still having a more athletic and better defender than Green on the floor in Royce O’Neale would be an awesome duo. The success of this lineup depends largely on Royce, however, he’s far from the only one who would benefit if it were to all come together.
As well as these lineups I’ve mentioned, I’m also excited to see how guys like Jeff Green, the high-potential Emmanuel Mudiay, and Georges Niang fit in. Not to mention, the Jazz still have three roster spots that need filled and it’s entirely possible that they’re far from done adding new talent.
In other words, they will run extremely deep and have a formidable squad to roll out at all times in varying daunting combinations conducted by the genius Quin Snyder. All I can say is, October simply cannot get here fast enough.