This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2011, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
The Jazz have not traded anyone since a frustrating 2010-11 season ended. The lone player Utah signed was veteran small forward C.J. Miles, and that move — picking up his final-year contract option — was more of a formality than a blockbuster inking. The only other athletes the Jazz added are rookies Enes Kanter and Alec Burks, neither of whom has played an NBA game.
But while many teams are expected to struggle through an accelerated training camp/free-agency period and the initial portion of a compressed 66-game season, Utah is viewing the anticipated chaos from an unexpected position of strength.
The Jazz will have 11 players under contract once Kanter and Burks are signed, and should be about $8 million to $10 million beneath a luxury tax set at $70 million. The three-man core of Utah's rebuilding project is Paul Millsap, Al Jefferson and Devin Harris — proven scorers with All-Star potential, all of whom are 28 or younger. Beneath the surface: an interesting blend of veterans seeking redemption — Mehmet Okur, Raja Bell — and young guns who form the building blocks of the Jazz's uncertain future — Derrick Favors, Gordon Hayward, Jeremy Evans, Kanter and Burks.
It's not the Showtime Lakers. Not even the 2009-10 Jazz. But it's better than what Utah represented midway through last year, when the team was falling apart, Jerry Sloan was on his last nerve, and All-Star Deron Williams was alienating key personnel within the organization, eventually earning a one-way ticket to New Jersey.
Key ingredients for any optimism about the immediate future of a Jazz team mixing a sometimes potent cocktail — six veterans with two years or less left on their contracts; five players with one year or less in the league, all 24 or younger — stem from the weight Utah won't have to carry once the collective bargaining agreement is approved and the lockout officially ends.
The Jazz don't have a D-Will situation, leaving the will-he-or-won't-he drama off to New Orleans (Chris Paul) and Orlando (Dwight Howard). Utah also won't have to fill its roster with overpriced mercenaries, relying instead on nine athletes who already know the Jazz's system and some of whom — Millsap, Miles, Jefferson, Favors, Hayward — are expected to show up for camp Dec. 9 in the best shape of their careers.
As a result, Utah finally has what it lacked throughout most of 2010-11: options. The Jazz are no longer dragged down by Andrei Kirilenko's maximum contract; second-year coach Tyrone Corbin can push, tweak and rethink without starting from scratch; and even if Kanter turns into a multiyear project or Okur never regains his 2009-10 form, the three-headed big-man monster of Millsap, Jefferson and Favors already looks imposing.
With Okur's expiring contract and an excess buildup in the frontcourt, Utah also has moveable pieces that could catch the eyes of multiple franchises scrambling to retool and reload during the fury of a narrow 16-day window that will separate free agency/training camp from the 2011-12 season tipoff on Christmas Day.
"One thing about [general manager] Kevin O'Connor is he's always been well-prepared," a league source said.
Initial indications are that the Jazz will, at least temporarily, remain the Jazz. Common sense will prevail. The temptation to reinvent the wheel will be lessened by the reality that trusted, proven players are suddenly more valuable in the NBA's new-world order.
And as other teams alternately soar and sputter, Utah believes it could come out ahead during 2011-12 by doing something a little old-fashioned: staying the course and trying to win games with the players it has.
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Key players
Core trio
Player Pos Stats*
Paul Millsap, 26 PF 17.3, 7.6
Al Jefferson, 26 C 18.6, 9.7
Devin Harris, 28 PG 15.8, 5.4^
Young guns
Go. Hayward, 21 SF 5.4, 1.9
De. Favors, 20 PF 8.2, 5.2
Jeremy Evans, 24 F 3.6, 2.0
Enes Kanter, 19 C Rookie
Alec Burks, 20 SG Rookie
*2010-11 points, rebounds
^Assists