Jazz blowout loss vs. Warriors shows how they may have saved the West
By Matt John
The Utah Jazz got a reminder in the worst way of what life looks like as a tanking team against the Golden State Warriors. The Dubs laid the smackdown on the Jazzmen, winning 127-86, but such a route at the hands of the Warriors can only make one wonder what could have been for them.
Now, to be fair, the Warriors have prospered in the NBA for the past decade. Winning four championships in such a short span is very difficult. Many thought they were yesterday's news coming into the season, but two games in, reports about their demise may have been greatly exaggerated.
The offense looks crisp, the defense looks stingy, and the point differential looks scary. The craziest part is that Stephen Curry hasn't put up prime Steph numbers yet, but his scoring gravity is still strong enough to give his teammates room to thrive, which is exactly what his mini-me, Buddy Hield, has done thus far.
They haven't played the toughest competition, but they've beaten the crap out of the competition they've faced thus far. Knowing the Warriors' history, it'd be wise not to count them out since they've played at the level they currently are before. And to think what their roster could have looked like had they succeeded in their Lauri Markkanen pursuit this summer.
The Jazz may have prevented the Warriors' reign from lasting longer
The Warriors were going for the gold (again) this offseason. Per Draymond Green, they set their sights on adding Paul George and Markkanen. Even before their hot start this season, it wouldn't have taken a genius to understand why they wanted the Jazz star in particular.
Curry and Markkanen would have thrived together, knowing the spacing and shot-creating abilities they possess as individual players. Given Markkanen's abilities as a lob threat and floor spacer, it's fair to say that Markkanen would have been the most talented scorer to pair with Curry since Kevin Durant.
As a bonus, Markkanen would have given the Warriors plenty of positional versatility on his own knowing that he can play the 3-5 at any point. But of course, the Jazz were not settling for anything less than a king's ransom for Lauri, and the Warriors refused to play ball.
By doing so, knowing Golden State's initial dominance thus far, the Jazz may have prevented the Warriors' reign from continuing in the Western Conference. That's not just because of how good they could have been with Markkanen.
Denver got worse this offseason, Oklahoma City looks promising but no one knows if they're ready, Minnesota made a last-second major and risky trade, and Dallas
Markkanen was, well, not himself against the Warriors. He was far from the player who gave the Grizzlies all they could handle a few nights back, shooting four-of-17 from the field. But everyone's entitled to an off-night, even Markkanen, and everyone knows what he's capable of. Better yet, even if he had been on his game, it would have been a blowout loss anyway.
His subpar performance doesn't detract from the very likely scenario that adding him to a team that looks like the cohesive playoff contender they've been since 2015 may have been all said team needed to return to where they have been.
Even if what the Jazz were asking for was construed as an overpay, trades like those may have been worth it for Golden State. It may not be too late for them to make another major splash, but in the Jazz's case, not giving them Markkanen may have just stopped the Western Conference from having to see a familiar powerhouse power through the conference for what feels like the umpteenth time.