Current & Former Jazz Execs Hint at a Bombastic Offseason

Will Hardy’s first season with the Utah Jazz can be deemed a success. Despite falling short of a playoff berth, fans have to be ecstatic about what the future beholds for the upstart Jazz. It always helps when former Jazz management takes note about what’s taking place.

Former Jazz executive director of basketball operations Richard Smith shared his thoughts on what Utah accomplished when he joined Spence Checketts on ESPN 700 The Drive.

“The Jazz are really in a nice position to be in,” Smith told Checketts. “Of course, they have a lot of work ahead of them. All the stuff they did over the last 12 months got them to the point where they uncovered, whether it was by design or whether they had a little Lady Luck go their way, but they uncovered two very key pieces, in my opinion, with Lauri Markkanen and Walker Kessler. They got [Ochai] Agbaji, who looks like is going to be a nice player for them.”

Indeed, the Jazz struck gold with three players emerging above expectations this past year. Heading the list was Markkanen, hitting career highs in points, field-goal percentage, assists, and minutes per game. Being named a starter in his first-ever All-Star game wasn’t on anyone’s preseason radar.

Then you have Kessler, who left NBA pundits wondering whether the Rudy Gobert trade may go down as one of the most lopsided exchanges in history. Kessler finished the year third in the NBA Rookie of the Year voting, averaging a double-double in the month of March (10.6 ppg, 11.4 rebounds).

Finally, Agbaji was a player who surprised later in the year as well. Buried at the back of the depth chart to start the season, Abaji was sent down to the G-league.

But after the roster reshuffle that occurred prior to the All-Star break, the former lottery pick found himself in the starting lineup. Agbaji responded by averaging 14.9 ppg in the last 10 games of the season.

Smith then transitioned to Utah’s outlook in the future and how Utah is positioned to make some upgrades moving forward.

“They got all these draft picks which maybe they get lucky," Smith said. “If they don’t, you can always do things around packaging, moving forward—what have you, and then the money you have. They have a lot of flexibility, and optionality is a common phrase to use with what they’ve got.”

With multiple ways to upgrade the roster, it will be interesting to see which path Jazz CEO Danny Ainge ends up taking. Certainly, the Jazz will add through the draft, but will Ainge attempt to bring in an All-Star-caliber player via trade or free agency?

The free agents that Ainge could target that would make an immediate impact are Jeremi Grant, Fred VanVleet, and Cameron Johnson, to name a few.

If nothing materializes in the free agency market, Utah has the assets to acquire a superstar such as Damian Lillard if an opportunity were to present itself. Either way, it feels like something big is on the horizon with Ainge riding the ship.

“Yeah, this is gonna be fun,” CEO Danny Ainge said. “A lot more draft picks, more money to spend—a shopping spree. This will be more fun—much more fun than last year.”

Stay tuned.

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