Ranking every season in Utah Jazz franchise history

2016-17 Utah Jazz Record: 51-31, Lost in Western Conference Semifinals to Golden State Warriors 0-4

The 2016-17 season was the apex of the Gordon Hayward era. Paradoxically, it was also the end of it.

Few could have seen the star wing departing for (literally) greener pastures following a season in which he averaged 21.9 points, 5.4 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game en route to a 51 win season. With a 24-year-old Gobert reaching new heights (14.0 points, 12.8 rebounds and 2.8 blocks per game) and Hayward rounding into a star, the Jazz appeared to have their future mapped out.

Appearances can be deceiving. In the meantime, this group was rounded out by a 30-year-old George Hill having a career season, a pair of young players who still appeared to have some star potential in Rodney Hood and Dante Exum, and aging-but-effective veterans like Joe Johnson and Boris Diaw. Gobert and Hayward may have been this team’s focal points, but their well-rounded roster was equally responsible for the season’s success.

They’d suffer a sweep at the hands of the eventual NBA champion Golden State Warriors. That team was a powerhouse, but outside of them, this iteration of the Utah Jazz would have been a challenge to any other team in the Western Conference.

It may have been Gordon Hayward’s last season in Salt Lake City, but this group set a standard that the Utah Jazz are still meeting to this day.