Bleacher Report Considers the Jazz’s 2023 Offseason an ‘Ambitious’ One
Across the past two offseasons, Danny Ainge and the rest of the Utah Jazz have been methodically building one of the best collections of young talent and future draft capital in the entire NBA. While trading away All-Stars Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert was a tough blow for Jazz fans to endure, everything has gone according to plan so far.
This summer, we saw the Jazz utilize a chunk of the assets they acquired through their blockbuster deals within the draft through three first-round picks. Combining this with the trade for F John Collins and re-signing of G Jordan Clarkson, Utah is going into 2023 with a competitive yet relatively youthful and inexperienced roster.
In Bleacher Report’s recent article, 1 Word to Describe Every NBA Team's Offseason, Greg Swarts pinned this summer as ambitious for the Jazz:
"The Utah Jazz are one of the more difficult teams to get a read on right now. This offseason, they acquired John Collins via trade and gave Jordan Clarkson a two-year extension that included $9.2 million in new money this season. That suggests they aren't punting on the year. However, they also added three rookies in the first round, and Walker Kessler and Ochai Agbaji are only going into their second season."
Swartz continues to tell fans not to get their hopes too high, as the Western Conference projects to be a steep climb to the top going into the 2023-24 NBA season:
“Expectations should probably be tempered. This isn't one of the better rosters in the Western Conference yet, even with Lauri Markkanen establishing himself as an All-Star. The Jazz have had an ambitious offseason with their new additions. Just don't expect them to go on a playoff run this season."
With so much talent stacked up in the West, it might be hard for the Jazz to keep up with some of the best superstar-led teams in the game. Utah only finished 12th in the 2022-23 final standings, and the argument could be made that most, if not every squad ahead of them is still a better team top-to-bottom.
The Jazz made the right moves this summer all things considered, but there may be a few more things needing to break their way to become a serious playoff threat.
Still, Jazz fans can look forward to next season with an array of young guys to build onto. With promising players like C Walker Kessler, F Taylor Hendricks, G Keyonte George, and many more on hand, Utah can keep moving forward in their team-building process with confidence.
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