Utah Jazz fourth-best lineup: Rudy Gobert, Bojan Bogdanovic, Royce O’Neale, Donovan Mitchell, Mike Conley
Yes, you read correctly. The Jazz’s starting lineup has only been their fourth most effective lineup in 2021-22 so far, at least according to their differential per CleaningtheGlass. This group still enjoys considerably more success than the previous lineup. Their +10.9 differential puts them in the 62nd percentile in the NBA.
An obvious caveat applies here: as the starting lineup, this group faces the stiffest competition of any of these units. Still, there are areas in which they could stand to improve.
Surprisingly, this group is not faring well in terms of offensive rebounding on either end. Their offensive rebound percentage of 23.7% ranks in the 44th percentile, and on defense, their opponent’s offensive rebound percentage of 25.9 tanks in the 33rd (all per CleaningtheGlass).
Maybe the lesson here is that as dominant as Gobert has been on the glass, he can’t do it alone. The Gobert + two wings + two guards formation has a lot of advantages, but it seems that rebounding holds them back to an extent.
Utah Jazz third-best lineup: Hassan Whiteside, Bojan Bogdanovic, Royce O’Neale, Jordan Clarkson, Donovan Mitchell
Were you expecting to see someone else at center? If so, don’t worry. He’ll be back.
Nonetheless, this lineup featuring Whiteside at the 5 has been very impressive. Their +12.7 differential puts them in the league’s 70th percentile according to CleaningtheGlass. Perhaps most significantly, they’ve actually fared better than the starting lineup offensively, at least on a points per 100 possessions basis. Their 122.2 mark in that statistic lands them in the 86th percentile.
It obviously isn’t the case that Whiteside is a better offensive player than Gobert. The former’s -2.3 Offensive Box Plus/Minus (OBPM) is substantially behind the latter’s 2.6 mark. Instead, it seems likely that a Clarkson/Mitchell backcourt is bludgeoning opponents in the short bursts this lineup has played together.