Jazz Insider Reveals Offseason Areas Needing Improvement

The Utah Jazz have some work to do.

Mar 27, 2024; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen (23) reacts to a play / Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports

The offseason chatter concerning the Utah Jazz continues to focus on what path makes the most sense to improve the roster this summer. Jazz CEO Danny Ainge's postseason comments regarding going “big game hunting” have given a fan base hope that Utah could enter a different phase of its rebuild heading into next season.

So, what specifically does Utah need this offseason to take that next step? The question arose when ex-Jazzman and current broadcast analyst Thurl Bailey joined The Bill Riley Show on ESPN 700.

“As I’m looking at the playoffs, I’m looking at kind of what’s trending right now,” Bailey said. “I think what is not trending is older veterans, superstars -- if you’re trying to get a championship before that window closes, and what’s trending more are very good young players who are developing, very coachable and very talented and are able to do it on both ends. Especially on the defensive end.”

Indeed, we’re amid a change of the guard in the NBA. We haven’t even started the second round, and LeBron James, Steph Curry, Kevin Durant, James Harden, and Damian Lillard are watching from the sidelines. Players who have exited their prime but are still getting paid max salaries are proving not to be the recipe for success.

The newer faces of the league are starting to take over. Nikola Jokic, Luka Doncic, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and Jason Tatum have all advanced to the second round, and for the second straight year, the NBA champion’s best player will be under 28 years old. If Utah’s front office is on the same page as Bailey, then Jazz fans should dismiss any rumors connected to the Jazz of max contract players out of their prime

Bailey then shifted gears regarding improvements the Jazz can make internally and specifically pointed to Lauri Markkanen and what he needs to happen for him to take his game to another level.

“I look at what Lauri needs to be better at, and that is really a better [isolation] player,” Bailey said. “A player that you can just throw him the ball, you got one guy in front of him, put the ball on the floor and go get us a bucket.”

Markkanen is currently considered a top-25 player in the league, but if he wants to reach All-NBA status, he will need to improve in that area. However, it will be easier to be that player if Utah brings another elite offensive threat that can take some of the focus off Markkanen.

Also, to be that player, Markkanen needs to be more durable. In back-to-back seasons, his body started breaking down at the end of the season, forcing him to miss multiple contests. Maybe missing games had more to do with Utah tanking the season post-All-Star break, but even if we look at the past, Markkanen getting injured has been a common theme.

Over his seven-year career, Markkanen misses 25 games per season on average, with a career-high of 68 games played during the 2017-18 season. Being the focus of the offense will include more wear and tear on the body over the course of a season, and time will tell if Markkanen can stay healthy in a Jazz uniform.

It looks like an eventful summer for Utah and fans can anticipate something big will happen. The next big date Jazz fans should be keeping an eye on is the draft lottery that is scheduled on May 12.

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