2017-2018 Season: A HUGE Success.

[David Stern]

I'm going to go on record and say it, no matter if the Jazz lose every game from here on out, this season is a HUGE success for the following reasons:

1 - Donovan Mitchell. This goes without saying, but we found our superstar. I'm a huge Eagles fan, and watching Wentz play last year, I felt that he had "it" and all the tools to be a franchise QB. I, along with every other Jazz fan, have the exact same feeling about Mitchell. This dude is going to be SPECIAL.

2 - Quin Snyder. I think this is his best coaching job to date. He lost his top TWO scorers, his top clutch scorer has been hurt a month, and our franchise-player was hurt for three weeks. How did a Snyder-coached team respond? Only by having the best offensive stretch we've seen in years. Our coach is elite, and I wouldn't trade him for anyone.

3 - Hope. We sat around FOR YEARS waiting for a superstar post-Deron. We all wanted Hayward, Kanter, and Favors to develop into one, but it never really happened. Hayward had ONE good year, and then left us. He never really ever connected with the fanbase. I'm going to say it: Gobert-Mitchell is the star tandem that our fanbase deserves. Not only are they All-NBA type players, but they connect with this fan base. They're filling a void that Jazz fans have had since Stockton and Malone: two superstars who are perfect for this team. We thought we had our stars in AK, Boozer, Deron, Big Al, and even Hayward; but there was always SOMETHING holding these guys back from fully connecting with the fan base. Mitchell and Rudy seem to genuinely love this franchise.

4 - This team is just fun to watch. We may have won more games last year, but they were significantly more boring to watch. Guys that we've been waiting to get healthy (Burks, Favors) are producing and thriving. Ingles is just a badass. Rudy has been hurt, but we know what he is at this point. Hood has shown glimpses of being a 1st or 2nd option. The three role players we brought in (Jerebko, Sefolosha, Udoh) have all looked like great contributors.

Hayward leaving really hurt our fanbase. Drafting Mitchell has been perfect, because he is a TRUE superstar in the making.

Like I said, if we lose every game from this point forward, it won't change my thoughts about this season being a success. The things that would make it even more successful are:

1 - Finding a third star. I don't care if its through the upcoming draft or through a trade, but getting a third star would be massive for this team.

2 - Make the playoffs. Let Donovan get that experience. Even if there's a slim chance of making the playoffs, let our players fight down the stretch to get in.

3 - Win a playoff series. I don't really expect this, but it would be exciting to see them take down a team. I think we would need to get in the 4-5 matchup to have a realistic chance at this.

4 - Figure out how to better integrate Gobert. He's been hurt, but hasn't been quite as good this season. Mitchell has been lethal in the PNR with Favors, so I'd love to see him and Rudy develop better chemistry.

5 - Get Exum some minutes at the end of the season, if he's healthy. Let's see what an Exum/Mitchell backcourt looks like, if we can.

 

[David Stern]

"This season is already a success, not that they'd be satisfied with a first-round exit. Few expected the Jazz to return to the postseason right after Hayward's exit, which could have been crippling for a small-market team that relies heavily on developing homegrown talent. Even fewer anticipated that the Jazz could overcome Gobert's missing 26 games due to injury. Quin Snyder, who has quietly established himself among the league's best coaches, deserves a lot of credit. With Gobert and Mitchell as foundation pieces, the forecast for Utah is bright."

http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/23081192/everything-need-know-binge-worthy-nba-playoffs

 

[veji1]

There is a very very very solid foundation here indeed : Mitchell-Gobert-Snyder. This is a super solid core.

The great bit as well is that the Jazz is in a very very very sound financial situation just as the market is if not certainly crashing, that would be an overstatement, at least significantly cooler.

The Jazz have Gobert and Mitchell locked up for the next 3 seasons at a very reasonable price : those guys would already command as a pair based on performance alone, not projection or anything, 50/60m in the open market. They are locked for the next 3 years at 25 to 30m per season.

This is just massive.

 

[Hekate]

 

[TheStormofWar]

Very true. A Tale of Two Seasons. Despite a huge turnover in our roster, injuries, changes, and growing pains; this has been a phenomenal season for the Jazz and it's clear the team is in an ascendancy. There isn't much I can add outside of my own $.02.

Gobert: Rudy is a top 15 player, if not top 10 player in the league. He does a ton of things that only shows up in new, advanced metrics and it's clear from the Jazz record how much he impacts this team. The team feeds off him in every way possible and he does so much on both ends of the floor. If he added more scoring prowess, he would (if not should already) be an MVP candidate. This is his team.

Mitchell: How long have we been searching for a #1 option? Lord Voldemort took seven seasons to become an all-star and have the type of production we need. But with all that, he was never an Alpha. Spida did it by the All-star break. It's so hard to remind myself he's a rookie. Let that sink in for a second. He. Replaced. An. All-star. In. His. First. Year. More or less, he's going to be a superstar. He knows it. We know it. The whole world knows it. And he wants to be here. Down, boner. Down.

Jingles, Favors, and Rubio: Above average players at their positions who do so much. Enough has been written about them that I can't add anything to it. They are part of the reason I wonder if we need another scorer rather than saying we do. They can do it already and will have had an off-season to work through things (assuming Faves returns).

Crowder, Thabo, Royce, Exum: Despite some bumps, injuries, and adjustment periods, we have a solid enough bench with these guys. I really want to see what a healthy Thabo and adjusted Crowder do.

Quin and Lindsey: They set the culture and do the deals. Who doesn't love them.

No matter what happens from here, Utah managed to re-tool rather than re-build in a half a season. How crazy is that? Thank you Jazz. Just....thank you.