Utah Jazz: Ranking the top five players from the year 2019

Bojan Bogdanovic

2019 stats: 30 games played, 21 points, 4.5 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 43.6 % 3pt

Before this season started, I assumed Mike Conley would be the second scoring option behind Donovan Mitchell. I knew Bojan Bogdanovic had done well in Indiana taking over the scoring load when Victor Oladipo went down with a quad injury, but I had no idea he was this prolific of a scorer.

In his 30 games as a Jazzman he’s had 14 games with 20 points or more, including six games where he eclipsed the 30 point mark. He’s already hit a game winning shot at the buzzer, and taken several dives for loose balls. It’s no wonder Jazz fans have quickly latched on to the Croatian Sensation as one of their new favorites this season.

He’s an all-around player too. His defense is underrated, he guarded LeBron James in the 2018 playoffs and did an honorable job. I wouldn’t say he’s as good as prime Gordon Hayward was for the Jazz in setting up teammates, grabbing rebounds, and locking down on defense, but Bogey’s a better scorer than Hayward and comes at a much cheaper price.

https://twitter.com/utahjazz/status/1205714488118280192

As it currently stands, Bogey might be the best bang-for-buck player in the league grabbed in the 2019 free agency class. He is set to make about 17 million dollars this season, putting him in the same neighborhood as Terry Rozier, Jeff Teague, Julius Randle, and Tristan Thompson despite clearly being a rung ahead of them. If he were the best player on an NBA team, he would be getting more All-Star consideration

His best moments as a Jazzman in 2019 include his game winner (which he scored a season high 33 points), his 30 point game against the Orlando Magic where Mitchell joined him in the 30 point club, and the night he tied the Jazz franchise record for three pointers made in a single game, with eight. My bet is that the best is yet to come for Bojan’s time with the Utah Jazz.