SLC Dunk - It’s a great time to be a Utah Jazz fan

[Taylor Griffin]

High hopes, new jerseys, and some incredible player chemistry should make for a special season.

What a time to be a Jazz fan. Approaching the start of the 2018-19 season, hopes are incredibly high. The Jazz have gotten plenty of national media attention, and loads of love from analysts who have ranked them as high as 2nd in the West and a top three team in the league. They retained their players this offseason and are ready to rock and roll with almost an identical squad to the one the took to the conference semi-finals last season. The Jazz have been hyped to the max this offseason, which is a great sign for the fans and the franchise. And then, we got these.

Throwback pic.twitter.com/yUdQN7CU5q

— Ricky Rubio (@rickyrubio9) September 19, 2018​

THE PURPLE THROWBACKS!!. I know, they aren’t the purple mountain jerseys (which are my favorite) but they are still amazing. They look even better on the players in real life than multiple mockups made or unveiled in NBA2k19. These jerseys are sweet.

pic.twitter.com/uDBweB8vnO

— Donovan Mitchell (@spidadmitchell) September 19, 2018

Basketball is amazing. @CJC9BOSS pic.twitter.com/DiLChNEXNi

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) September 19, 2018​

If the unveiling of the new jerseys didn’t make your day yesterday, this just might. With all of the drama surrounding Minnesota Timberwolves’ Jimmy Butler and his recent trade demand, Ricky Rubio gave a simple reminder of how important team chemistry is to players. After all of the drama began circulating on Twitter, Rubio tweeted this:

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— Ricky Rubio (@rickyrubio9) September 19, 2018​

A little background reminder on the story here: Rubio was traded from the Wolves last offseason, as a sign that the Wolves did not want him any longer and he did not turn into the player that they had hoped (in a nutshell). More background info on this little tweet: Last season when the Jazz played the Timberwolves, Rubio was cheap-shotted by Wolves guard Jeff Teague. It triggered a bit of a scuffle between players, and Jimmy Butler, WHO WAS HOME ON HIS COUCH, decided it was a good idea to come out of Twitter retirement to voice his feelings on the situation. Butler was defending “his coach” which appears right now to be incredibly ironic. Ricky Rubio is happy where he is. And Jazz fans are happy where he is too.

If the new Jazz throwbacks AND Ricky Rubio’s emoji game weren’t enough to make your day, then this CERTAINLY will do the trick. Joe Ingles, known social media savage, had quite possibly his best tweet of his career yesterday. In an exchange with Blake Griffin regarding Ingles’ jersey, Joe got the best of Griffin once again.

BOOM, ROASTED!

The Jazz were well-represented in ESPN’s NBA rank, with Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell coming in at ranks 23 and 22 respectively.

On Gobert-

It’s not a coincidence that the Jazz’s 29-6 finish last season started when Gobert got healthy after missing time with two knee injuries. His presence essentially guarantees that the Jazz will be an elite defensive team. But the reigning Defensive Player of the Year is often inaccurately labeled as a one-dimensional player.

He commands attention as a finisher (13.8 PPG on 64.5 percent shooting) and is compared to a left tackle by coaches because he screens so effectively, leading the league by a wide margin with 6.2 “screen assists” per game in 2017-18, according to NBA.com. -- Tim MacMahon
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On Mitchell-

Expect Mitchell, known for his work ethic and film study, to refine his scoring efficiency while expanding his playmaking, potentially turning in a 25-5-5 season. Mitchell showed flashes as a pick-and-roll facilitator last season, and I’d expect him to continue to evolve his floor game by embracing aggressive three-level scoring. If the Jazz keep up their winning ways as expected, Mitchell could contend for a Western Conference All-Star bid in Year 2. -- Mike Schmitz
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This is a big day for basketball fans. It appears a sequel to Space Jam is finally in the making. This was posted on Twitter yesterday, giving a hint at this incredible possibility.

pic.twitter.com/Ay6wRaB915

— SpringHill Ent. (@SpringHillEnt) September 19, 2018​

This triggered some great conversations on Twitter regarding which players would be the ‘Monstars’ in the new film.

A Space Jam sequel with @KingJames?!

Cast his opponents: pic.twitter.com/V6LEtde9Uu

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) September 19, 2018​

Who are your Monstars?

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