Jazz Coach Will Hardy Sounds Off on Rotation Decisions
The Utah Jazz have had two games to accumulate enough data to help make decisions regarding the rotation. In the first two preseason games, head coach Will Hardy has chosen to start Collin Sexton and Talen Horton-Tucker in his backcourt. The frontcourt starters consisted of Lauri Markkanen, John Collins, and Walker Kessler.
Is this how the starting five will look moving forward? According to Hardy, what takes place in Utah’s upcoming homestand will be more telling of how the future rotation shapes up.
“As a staff, these next three days at home are going to be important to really kind of put our flag in the sand and say, 'Hey, this is how we're going to go at the beginning of the year," Hardy said.
If anything, the first two preseason games have made it even more confusing about who should be the starting point guard and shooting guard on opening night.
The dual of Horton-Tucker and Sexton has spacing issues that can’t be overlooked. Both players excel at penetrating to the painted area, but neither are good catch-and-shoot specialists that spread the court in half-court sets. This could be a problem when it’s time for Markkanen to exploit a mismatch and needs room to operate.
Kris Dunn has stood out more than anyone and may be the best option to be the floor general in the short term. However, if Utah has championship aspirations, then at some point, the Jazz will need to upgrade to a player that brings more to the table than Dunn.
Jazz fans already know what Jordan Clarkson can do on the court. The former Sixth Man of the Year can still score in bunches, but having more turnovers than assists in Utah’s first two contests is additional proof that his skillset is best suited as the first player off the bench.
It appears the best option may be for Keyonte George to take over at some point during the year. Although his stat line has been less than stellar, it’s apparent he’s in a class by himself when it comes to the eye test. The No. 13 overall pick has shown flashes of being an elite facilitator and may just need more live reps to cement himself as the starter.
No matter how it shakes out, Hardy has his work to do in figuring out which combinations work the best. He elaborated after Tuesday night's loss.
“This is the NBA," Hardy said. "These guys are all really good. We've just got to figure out how to best fit them together."
Utah’s next game will be against the Portland Trail Blazers at the Delta Center on Saturday. The tip-off is at 7:00 MDT.
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