Utah Jazz Given Brutal Evaluation After Bumpy Season Start

The Utah Jazz haven't had the most pleasant start to the season.

Dec 3, 2024; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Utah Jazz guard Collin Sexton (2) and forward John Collins (20) high five after a play against the Oklahoma City Thunder during the first quarter of an NBA Cup game at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images / Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

The first quarter of the 2024-25 NBA season is in the books, and things haven't quite lifted off the ground for the Utah Jazz to kick things off.

Through an initial 21-game sample size, the Jazz have no doubt had some struggles, totaling a 4-17 regular season record to place 14th in the conference, currently on a five-game losing streak to put them further into the depths of the West.

And as with such a rough season being underway in Salt Lake City, the national media hasn't been quite too kind to the Jazz when taking a step back to evaluate their season, the latest criticism coming from The Athletic and Zach Harper.

The Athletic recently released their first-quarter grades for each team around the NBA, stacking the league up from an A+, all the way down to a lowly D-. In the case of the Jazz, they were at the bottom of the barrel, being the only team emerging with a D- grade.

"Weren’t the Jazz supposed to be competitive early before embracing the tank for Cooper Flagg? Maybe this team isn’t that talented."

- Zach Harper, The Athletic

It's been bleak on both sides of the ball to start in Utah. They currently rank 25th in the NBA for offensive rating, and dead-last at 30th for defensive rating, so there's not much for this roster to hang their hat on for an identity. They've also placed bottom three in the league for margin of victory at -10.33-- showing that when the Jazz lose, it's usually in a double-digit fashion.

Over the past two years in Utah, they've remained to be a mostly competitive team in the beginning months of the season before ultimately fading out of the Play-In race and selling off on a few of their assets at the trade deadline. However, this time, the Jazz have made their intentions clear of bottoming out in the standings.

The light at the end of the tunnel is the potential for a high lottery pick for the 2025 NBA draft. In a loaded class stacked with the likes of Cooper Flagg, Ace Bailey, and Dylan Harper, it'll be hard to walk out of the top of the first round without being satisfied with the return, and the Jazz are seemingly doing all they can to get there.

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