While almost everything points to the Utah Jazz and star Donovan Mitchell parting ways this offseason, nothing has been set yet and as of now, he is still a Jazzman. Time will tell if he stays, but so far this offseason the Utah Jazz have created a roster that could viably build around their star.
Assuming the Jazz opt not to trade their centerpiece, fans should be developing expectations for a post-Gobert roster. With Mitchell, Clarkson, Bogdonovich, and either Conley or Beverly leading the way, the Jazz do have enough big names to stay afloat, but can they stay relevant in a top-heavy Western Conference?
Utah Jazz: What does next season look like if Mitchell stays?
This is all under the assumption that the Jazz make little to no offseason moves for the remainder of the summer. That may be asking too much, but with what we know, anything else would be purely speculative. In the West, there are a few teams who tower above the others and some teams who will be left far behind, and I suspect the Jazz as they stand might be somewhere in the middle.
The Jazz finished fifth in the conference last season. In my mind, the Pheonix Suns are starting to decline and unless they add superstar Kevin Durant, they will still be a top team but not the top team. Memphis and Dallas are on the rise, as Ja Morant continues to ascend and Christian Wood anchors the Mavericks, and the Warriors will seemingly always be good.
So does that mean Utah stays in the top five next year? Absolutely not. The Nuggets were willed to the playoffs by MVP Nikola Jokic, and with Jamal Murray and Micheal Porter Jr. returning, the Nuggets will race past the Jazz. The Timberwolves added Rudy Gobert, in case you haven’t heard, and they seem to be on the rise.
Even the lowly Pelicans have built a successful squad by adding CJ McCollum, and if Zion plays half as well as expected, New Orleans will be a sleeper team. On top of that, both Los Angeles teams are regrouping, and the Clippers will finally be healthy, so who knows what to expect out of Hollywood.
The verdict is Utah will fight for a play-in appearance
The bottom feeders remain the same as always. San Antonio, Houston, Sacramento, Portland, and Oklahoma City are all slowly trending up, but they don’t have a superstar–aside from Lillard–to keep them afloat. The Jazz have a better supporting cast than Portland, so Utah should outplay them.
With five teams missing even the play-in game, the Jazz should be able to squeeze in, and might even reach the ninth seed if the Lakers fall flat again. Mitchell alone is enough to keep the Jazz around, but without an elite defender like Gobert and an aging star in Conely, the Jazz might fizz out. Depending on how much faith you have in Mitchell making the Jazz relevant again soon, a rebuild might be in order.