The events of last season and this past offseason made the Utah Jazz a team on the rise.
The Utah Jazz were not supposed to be 2-7 to start the season. Yes, the team is technically in year two of a rebuild but we’ve seen time and time from across the wide world of sports that turnarounds are not a road map. There is no set time for how long a rebuild should last, and the Jazz seemingly were proof of that last year.
The Jazz went 37-45, leading many to believe, including the Jazz’s front office, that this team was closer to competition than not. They went in on John Collins, they re-signed Jordan Clarkson, and held off on trading guys like Talen Horton-Tucker with the idea that he may be needed.
But, due to poor lineup management from head coach Will Hardy, a bad defense, and selfish offensive play, the Jazz are 2-7, and at this rate are looking at 23-25 wins this season. Considering the moves made in the offseason, no one really thought that the team would win fewer games than they did the year before.
In fact, most national media outlets had the Jazz winning 40 or more, and qualifying for, if not the playoffs, at least the play-in tournament. And really the only two major names not on this year’s team that were on last year’s team were Mike Conley and Jarred Vanderbilt. Sure, there were other players that got traded away, but those seem to be the big two the squad is missing.
Could they really not replace Conley in the offseason? Was Vanderbilt that important to the Jazz’s defense? If so, it begs to reason why they were shipped out of town in the first place. If they weren’t, we have to ask ourselves why this squad, minus a couple of good pieces, is somehow significantly worse than anyone imagined.
After all, we’re not just talking about a 2-7 start, with a 0-5 road record to start the season and five of the seven losses being by more than 10+ points. We’re talking about a team that can’t keep games close and keep getting blown out.
And it’s not like the Jazz are playing the best of the best; just three of the teams’ first nine teams they’ve played have a winning record. Everyone else, as of Nov. 10, 2023, has a .500 record or worse.
The Jazz went 2-7 to start the year with nine total games being separated by 15 points, sure, that was possible. Losing close games is a sign of a young team. But they aren’t losing by 15 total points, they’re losing by a dozen or so most nights.
The Jazz have the worst point difference in the league. A .500 record for the Jazz to close the season? Sure, that would’ve been fine.
A projected 20-odd win season and a -12.5 point differential on the year? That was not expected. This team is better than 20-odd wins and the worst point difference in the year. They are better than being the worst team in the NBA, a spot they are dangerously close to claiming for their own.
So yes, this is year two of a rebuild, but things changed last season. Things changed this offseason. This is not what anyone should have expected for this season.