2023-24 Season Preview: Utah Jazz

One year removed from blowing up their roster and initiating a new era of Utah Jazz basketball lore, the Jazz find themselves in an interesting position ahead of the 2023-24 NBA campaign with a fascinating blend of youth, talent, and (most notably) LENGTH. Some creative lineups and personnel groupings will surely be at play for Utah this season, but let’s examine the current state of the roster and what we could expect from the Jazz this upcoming season.

2022-23 Recap

Record: 37-45 (12th in Western Conference)

ORTG: 115.8 (10th)

DRTG: 116.7 (23rd)

Net RTG: -0.9 (22nd)

Heading into the 2022-23 NBA season, the expectations for the Utah Jazz were considerably low. This was understandable bearing in mind the organization parted ways with the two franchise cornerstones, big man Rudy Gobert and guard Donovan Mitchell, that elevated the roster to Western conference relevancy for years. Nonetheless, Danny Ainge and the Jazz front office were able to manifest some lucrative returns in these big-time trades that would enable them to prioritize player development and replenish their draft capital, the two most foundational aspects of the rebuilding cycle. 

Surprisingly enough, rookie Head Coach Will Hardy seemed to extract the most out of this roster in the early goings of the season, shocking the NBA landscape by posting a 10-3 record to start the game and a 116.0 ORTG (2nd in NBA) through the first 13 games of the season. Most notably, Hardy was able to unleash the hidden talent of Lauri Markannen, who was acquired from Cleveland in the Mitchell trade, and tap into the potential the Finnish forward had been searching for after stints in Chicago and Cleveland where he never seemed to live up to the hype he had as a draft prospect. Hardy implemented an offensive system that heavily emphasized “pace-and-space” concepts, which enabled Markkanen to remain as a spot-up shooting threat but also showcase a previously unknown  ability to drive to the rim. Being the focal point of the offense led to tremendous success for Lauri, as he earned the NBA’S Most Improved Player award for the 2022-23 season after being named an All-Star and slashing (stats). Additionally, the Jazz had a pleasant breakout from rookie Walker Kessler as a potential high level rim-defender and efficient paint scorer, some shooting growth from young guard Collin Sexton, along with some steadiness from veterans Jordan Clarkson and Kelly Olynyk. 

While a 37-45 record is not overly impressive at face-value, it surprised a lot of NBA fans and the general media. This upcoming season features a lot of questions regarding if last season was truly legitimate and how can Utah build off what they unraveled?

2023 Offseason

Utah started their offseason with the NBA draft where they made three selections (no. 9, 16, 28). At pick no. 9 they took an upside swing with potential 3-D big man Taylor Hendricks out of UCF as a potential lengthy future frontcourt pairing with Lauri Markkanen. At no. 16, Utah selected Baylor combo guard Keyonte George, who has one of the most aesthetically pleasing shots in this rookie class and is known to put up some big scoring numbers. And speaking of scoring, Utah made its third first round selection at no. 28 by taking Ohio St. wing Brice Sensabaugh, who surprisingly fell in the draft due to some injury concerns. Utah seemed to have a pretty solid draft haul that boasts lots of potential as the team truly commences its youth movement.

Shortly before the start of the NBA’s free agency period, the Jazz acquired Atlanta Hawks forward and trade block veteran John Collins in exchange for aging forward Rudy Gay and a future 2nd round pick. While Utah now has to deal with Collins’ contract, they may be able to find lightning in a bottle for a once promising Collins (who will only be 26 yrs old at the start of the season) who seemed to lose favor in Atlanta. His combination of athleticism and length fits right into a Utah roster who may get creative and squeeze out some of the previous production Collins enjoyed in his first few years in the league. 

The Jazz were not incredibly active in free agency, which makes sense considering the focus on current player development for their roster, but did re-sign guard Jordan Clarkson to a relatively team-friendly extension for 3 yrs/$55 million. Clarkson has been a relative fan favorite in Utah and the 31-year old brought some needed stability and perimeter scoring to the young roster. Securing a quality veteran presence for a few more seasons could prove to be beneficial for the Jazz, and Clarkson still has some value to shopping contenders in need of some scoring punch if it comes to that.

To round out the offseason, the Jazz made some small additions to their roster, bringing back guard Johnny Juzang to a two-way deal, signing center Omer Yurtseven to a 1 year deal and bringing in guard Josh Christopher to a two-way deal to round out their roster.

Rotation:

Guards: Jordan Clarkson, Collin Sexton, Talen Horton-Tucker, Kris Dunn, Keyonte George**, Josh Christopher*, Johnny Juzang*

Forwards: Lauri Markkanen, John Collins, Ochai Agbaji, Simone Fontecchio, Luka Samanic, Taylor Hendricks**, Brice Sensabaugh**

Centers: Walker Kessler, Kelly Olynyk, Omer Yurtseven, Micah Potter*

Potential Starters:

(G) Jordan Clarkson

(G) Talen Horton-Tucker

(F) Lauri Markkanen

(F) John Collins

(C) Walker Kessler

The biggest question with the Jazz heading into the upcoming season has to be the point guard position. After trading Mike Conley to the Timberwolves at the deadline last season, the Jazz ended the year mixing and matching with different players at the position. Will Hardy seems poised to start the season with Clarkson, but THT, Sexton, Dunn and even George may contend for the spot at some point throughout the year. I think this is less of an issue in the short-term for the Jazz, as their offense is mainly centered around transition play and generally looks for 3-4 players in a given lineup to be able to push the ball up the court for quick shots. Regardless, pace tends to slow down at the end of games and especially in playoff settings, so establishing a floor general for the long-term should be prioritized and assessing whether that player is on the roster currently.

My other question with this rotation is at what point do the Jazz deploy the youth movement and fully prioritize playing their young players sizable minutes? While the start of the season will certainly feature a heavy dosage of Clarkson, Sexton, Collins and Olynyk, when will those minutes be altered to favor the likes of Hendricks, George, Agbaji, Sensabaugh and so on. Even if the team is competitive in the Western conference standings well into the season, the front office will surely want to assess their most recent draft stash along with other young players. How this is balanced throughout the year will be incredibly intriguing to monitor considering the talent bleeding through all parts of the depth chart. This may lead to a busy trade deadline period for Danny Ainge, which I’m sure he won’t mind.

I’m also curious about how they will manage all the height and length they have on their roster and if Will Hardy is able to conceptualize a way they can cohesively operate. How will they balance Collins, Olynyk, and Hendricks especially when considering Markkanen and Kessler seem penciled in for significant minutes. While there is some skill with these bigs, specifically with their perimeter (or potential perimeter) ability, it can be difficult to add true variety in an offense featuring multiple big men. It will be fascinating to monitor how the Jazz’s bigs will be deployed and utilized, and how they will ultimately fare with the different lineup combinations.

Some interesting rotation players to monitor:

Kris Dunn – Dunn was able to gain some favor in the rotation towards the end of last season after guaranteeing his original 10-day contract for the whole season. His tenacity on defense at the point-of-attack and capability as a playmaker make him a potential solution to both the guard and defensive questions for the Jazz

Brice Sensabaugh – Sensabaugh surprisingly fell to the end of the first round in this year’s draft, much to the gratitude of Utah’s front office. While he has some defensive questions, he proved as an Ohio St. freshman that he can score in bunches from all three levels. He may seep his way into some consistent minutes based on that skill alone if he gets cooking at some point this season.

X-Factor: Collin Sexton

Sexton was initially regarded as the centerpiece (in terms of players) in Utah’s return from the Donovan Mitchell trade. He struggled with injuries throughout the season and only suited up in 48 (15 starts) games last season. In the games that he did appear in, we saw Sexton put up a 61.6% TS% and a 55.7% eFG% both being career highs. While the volume was still low (2.5 3PA/g), Sexton shot 39.3% from 3 displaying some growth as a shooter. Sexton has thrived as someone who can pressure the rim and cause defenses to collapse on the paint, but he tended to settle for too many contested pull-ups when his drives were cut off. If he can exhibit a newfound willingness to shoot from outside and do so efficiently, along with continued development as a playmaker, Sexton may fortify himself in Utah’s long-term guard plans. 

Breakout: Keyonte George (plus a quick Ochai Agbaji shoutout)

Keyonte George put on a show during the various Summer League tournaments after being selected 16th overall in the 2023 NBA Draft. His three-level scoring ability truly popped, which was his true calling card coming out of Baylor. However, George was often used as a lead guard for Utah’s summer squad and flashed some legitimate ability to make plays for others and initiate an offense. It appears the Jazz are willing to let George assume some reps at the point guard position, if we see some positive trends in the playmaking aspect of George’s game, we may see him starting at point guard by season’s end. The scoring ability stands out enough that Keyonte may generate some buzz as a dark horse Rookie of the Year candidate if he can carve out some decent minutes in this Jazz rotation. Additionally, the Baylor program has produced some quality defense guards in its history, and (when engaged and willing) Keyonte George has some tools to be a solid defender at the guard position which may gain him favor in the lineup.

I’m kind of cheating by adding a second player here, but just wanted to highlight the potential breakout for Ochai Agbaji. He showed flashes as a consistent shooter last season, and embarked on a summer where he was asked to handle a bit more offense responsibility in terms of making plays and creating some offense. His motor and competitiveness will allow him to stick defensively, and he could be in for a big sophomore campaign if some things start to click for him.

2023-24 Outlook

The Jazz may be one of the very few teams in the NBA that have the luxury of minimal pressure (if that’s even possible). With last season featuring some brief overachievement and some remarkable breakouts, they entered the offseason finally being able to construct a roster with more youth and skill sets they desire. For Will Hardy, this year is about playing around with lineups, and monitoring how your players develop to see what works. They have plenty of length and versatility that the lineup combinations can and most likely will get really creative and fun. If the team has a worse record compared to last year, the result is a higher draft pick and an opportunity to add an even more impactful young piece to this complex and wonderful puzzle. If the team improves, it will most likely be a product of substantial growth from the Jazz’s young pieces, which would also be a major plus and foreshadowing for an expedited rebuild. I would expect this team to perform around the same as last season, as the roster is still incredibly young but will still receive considerable playing time and attention. Not to mention the West is loaded with talented and experienced rosters, making it difficult for Utah to easily crack the play-in tournament. Nonetheless, I’m looking forward to Utah Jazz basketball this season and believe they will be an immensely enjoyable nightly watch with their conjunction of size, skill, and youth.