Engorged On Unborn Gore
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https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/27143232/winners-losers-wildest-nba-week-ever
The Utah Jazz are loaded after trading for Conley and splurging on Bojan Bogdanovic -- a last-minute pivot after Nikola Mirotic spurned them. Jeff Greenand Ed Davis bring needed depth.
Utah will miss Derrick Favors. An injury to Green or Davis would bring more danger than it should. But the Jazz will be really hard to guard with four shooters around Gobert and two ball handlers who can score from anywhere, in Conley and Mitchell.
In the past, Quin Snyder leaned on complex motion to mask a lack of go-go talent. The Jazz can simplify now and run more classic spread pick-and-roll around Gobert. They remind of the peak Dwight Howard-era Magic, down to Gobert grabbing enough offensive rebounds on his own to mimic the effect of a normal team having two or even three guys crash the glass.
Gobert faces a huge burden on defense, but is it really so much bigger with Bogdanovic as small-ball power forward than with Jae Crowder? Gobert is back-to-back Defensive Player of the Year. It's his job to handle that burden.
Utah can make the Finals, but I'm a tick lower on the Jazz than the consensus. They don't feel soft, exactly. Maybe lacking in force? Compare them to last season's Philadelphia 76ers, who overwhelmed opponents -- and unnerved the champion Toronto Raptors -- with sheer size and athleticism. Even Conley doesn't scare you in that sense. He's fast, but he's barely 6-foot-1; he beats you with craft. Gobert is not as powerful or coordinated rolling to the rim as peak Howard.
Which projected starter is defending huge alpha wing scorers like LeBron, George and Leonard? What about James Harden? That job fell mostly to Ricky Rubio in last season's playoffs.
Dante Exum and Royce O'Neale figure into those questions. They bring some of that missing oomph. But will Utah be able to score enough against elite defenses with one or both on the floor? Bogdanovic is 30; that four-year, $73 million deal may not age well.