Biggest what if’s of the Utah Jazz season

Biggest what if’s of the Utah Jazz season

All right, let’s talk about the biggest whatifs for the Utah Jazz this season. Let’s get into it. [Music] All right, guys. Like always, like the video, subscribe to the channel if you’re new here. The channel is growing and I need everyone to subscribe so we can keep doing this content and keep growing. All right, guys. So, the season is two days away. We get to finally watch the Jazz. I am excited about it. I’m refreshed, renewed, and it’s time to start talking Jazz basketball night after night, game recaps, as well as just daily videos like we’ve been trying to do. And guess what? It’s going to be easier for me because the Jazz are actually playing. We can dissect what we’re watching. But one of the things that I am going to be watching this season, the first big what if and I think everyone would agree is what if Ace Bailey is great. I was thinking about Ace Bailey and I wrote about this on SLC Dunk a few days ago. Sorry, there were some personal matters. I’ve already talked about him. We’ve moved on. But what if Ace Bailey comes into the season and based off of what we saw in summer league where he was rebounding the ball really well? What if Ace Bailey averages something like 188 and three? If Ace Bailey earns his way into a starting lineup for this Utah Jazz team, and if he plays well, let’s say he catches on quicker than we thought, let’s say he makes quick decisions, his athleticism really shows up and and affects the game in a really impactful way. One of the impactful ways that your athleticism can affect things is things like rebounds and defense and steals and stuff like that. I think Ace Bailey is going to be a really good rebounder. He’s it’s what he showed us during the the summer league and if he gets those minutes and if he’s on the floor, I think he has a chance to be a real impact rebounder and if he scores the ball well, he’s one of those players with his ability to score, you know, I would say that he’s a three-level player. I know there were a lot of draft guys that would disagree because he just didn’t show a lot in at Rutgers, although in high school he did because the handle wasn’t as strong as you’d like it to be. Does not did not get to the rim as much as you would have hoped. Well, we saw a little bit of it in summer league. There’s a few times where that ball’s a little bit loose, but he doesn’t necessarily have to be constantly with the ball in his hands. Now, I’d like this season for him to have the ball in his hands a decent amount cuz I want him to learn and grow and get to his peak form sooner than later. That’s why Utah needs to play him and play him a lot. I think 18 points a game is a reasonable goal for Ace Bailey if he’s getting starter minutes. And I think he should and I kind of think that he will. It’s hard to take a player off the floor like Ace Bailey with what he is. And I think if he goes out there and does like 188 and three with good defense, you’re looking at a really nice player from the with the Jazz because what he’s going to do in this rookie season is the baseline of what he’s going to be. I am super high. You know, obviously wishful thinking. I’m a Jazz fan so I’m this is very much wishful thinking on my end, but I don’t think it’s unreasonable. I think Ace Bailey shows that he can shoot the three, that he can score in the mid-range, and that he can score at the rim. you know, he he may not have the handle yet to be a 26 point per game guy, but I think that’s in there and I think that’s in the cards down the road this season. And and Will Hardy’s already talked about it. He doesn’t want Ace Bailey to feel like he has to do everything. But if he makes quick decisions, if he gets that ball and takes what’s given to him, if he moves the ball within the offense, which he showed that he could, even in summer league, he was getting assists. and near the end of his time at Ruckers, he was assisting the ball more than he gets credit for. You’ve got a player that plays well within the offense. Now, points, rebounds are things he can do. Can he also assist the ball at least two to three assists per game? I think that’s definitely possible. If he just moves the ball within the offense, you can get two assists per game. That’s not hard to do. If you’re playing 36 minutes a night, that’s zero reason why Ace Bailey can’t average two to three assists. If he does more than that, you’ve got to be absolutely ecstatic. Like if Ace Bailey has an 188 and five rookie season, you’re looking at potential rookie of the year stuff. That’s that type of season you’re looking at. I This is my kind of best case scenario. Maybe he beats it. Who knows? If he’s even better, then that’s incredible. Then you’ve got kind of a superstar on your hands. But I think it’s there. And if he’s that good, then it really solidifies him as a core piece for the Jazz of the future to build around because you know right away what he is and what he can do. All right, next. What if for the Utah Jazz? What if Taylor Hendris takes a leap. This is one of the other things I, you know, after Ace Bailey, this might be my second most anticipated thing of the season is just seeing Taylor Hendricks come back. I am so excited to see him come back from injury. It’s going to be electric when he gets on the floor and everyone cheers him on. You know, Jazz fans are going to be incredible about that and cheering him when he’s back on the floor after what was a just horrendous injury. But all signs and all reports are that he looks good. He is playing strong. He looks bigger. He looks physically more built. If you look at his pictures right now compared to his rookie season, his legs look stronger, which is great for that injury. You hope that that doesn’t happen again. Obviously, it was a fluke thing. I think that if Taylor Hendrickx, if Taylor, Here’s the thing. What does that mean? What if Taylor Hendris is really good? What if Taylor Hendricks is knocking down threes at like 40% driving to the basket and scoring and then playing all NBA level defense? This is kind of what you’re hoping from Taylor Hendricks. What if he does those things? then all of a sudden you’ve really got the four of the future for your team. You know, Utah is going to not likely win a ton of games this year, but let’s say both of these things happen. If TA if a Ace Bailey looks really good and Taylor Hendris has taken a leap, then all of a sudden this Jazz team gets really really interesting. And then you’ve got some questions with Lowry Markin. Can you play Ace Bailey, Taylor Hendricks, and Lowry Markin at the same time? It’s an it’s a good problem to have, but there comes a point where you can’t have these players playing these positions all at the same time. And now I know a lot of people will probably say something like, “Well, play Ace Bailey at the two.” And maybe like there may be times where you have big lineups like that, and I think you should. I don’t know if you want Ace Bailey playing at the two fulltime, right? Utah is going to have Utah has a bunch of guards that can fill that role. You’re going to need some playmaking, especially if you have like if you have a team of Ace Bailey, Lowry Markin, and Taylor Hendris. You know, between Lowry Markin and Taylor Hendricks, that’s almost no playmaking. I mean, they can move the ball a little bit within the offense, but they’re not playmakers. Ace Bailey, we don’t really quite know what kind of playmaker is going to be. So, I just don’t think that’s the right move for a winning team. And I know the Jazz aren’t looking to win, and I agree. They should not be worried about wins this season. and they should be worried about player development. But you do want to set guys up to succeed. You want to put guys in a position that they can do well and do what they do well, right? You don’t want it’s not fun if you’re in at at b at you know at your job and they give you something that you’re not really comfortable doing. You’d much rather do the things you’re really good at than have them putting you in a place because they kind of have to. Same thing. It’s just you want to set guys up to succeed. You want to have them set up doing the things that they’re good at. Now, maybe the future of the Jazz team is having Taylor Hendricks at the center, which is something I am a big fan of. I think that’s something the Jazz should really look at. And I I wonder if, you know, the lack of depth of the center position. I know they got Mo Bomba, you Nerkach, but I tell you what, Nerkach is washed and this is Mo Bomba’s like sixth team. I would much rather have situations where we look at Taylor Hendrickx as backup center to Walker Kesler. We don’t know what’s going to happen with Walker Kesler this off season, but I do think it’s important that you see what Taylor Hendricks brings because if Taylor Hendricks is playing center and you have that type of shooting from that spot, then things get really interesting. Then you’re like opening lanes for everybody. You’re giving an open basket for a lot of players. You set up really interesting pick and roll plays with a five out system. And it’s something I’m sure the Jazz would like to try because it really does change things for your team. Yeah. And Utah is going to get a great player in this next draft. And I just honestly, just side note, I’m so excited to watch this team and how good these players are. Let’s just hope they live up to those things. All right, finally. What if Cody Williams is good? Summer League, he looked so much better. And I know Philippowski. And by the way, Philippowski, maybe Philipowski is the backup center. I I can’t forget about Philippowski. I just I love the defense of Taylor Hendricks. So, we can’t forget about Philippowski. It’s just I think Philippowski kind of maxes out as a backup center because he cannot protect the rim. So, there’s some liability there. Although, I do think he can play he can probably play the four. I I need to do a video just about Philippowski because I think he probably has to focus as a backup four. But then that’s even more of an issue where you’ve got Lowry Markin, Taylor Hendricks, Philipski, you’ve got a glut of power forwards. It’s all kind of signs pointing to there might be a potential Lowry Markin in trade this season. But that’s if Taylor Hendrickx is really good. If Taylor Hendricks is really good, then you’re probably fine trading market and and seeing what you can get pick-wise and maybe a young player. The Detroit Pistons trade that’s out there right now that’s being rumored is a great one. And you know, if Utah comes away like, okay, this is my channel and I’m just going to talk about what I want. Let’s we can still talk about Cody Williams and we will. In fact, Cody Williams I don’t think is a bad idea playing at the two. But if Utah trades Lowry Markin into Detroit for Jaden Ivy and picks, that’s incredible because then let’s say you’ve got your starting, you know, guard there next to either Kee George, Bryce Sensaba, Cody Williams, whatever it is. You’ve got size, length, and athleticism at every single position. You have potential highlevel defense at all the different positions. And I know Jaden Ivy has to prove some things defensively, but he’s shown that he can defend with that level of size and athleticism. Utah looks really good for the future, like really good. And even more picks that they can use to just continue to either trade up in the draft in the future in future drafts or just pick players that fit the roles they need. It just sets the Jazz up to be really good. But anyways, back to this. What if Cody Williams is good? We saw Cody Williams play, I’d say the second best player on Jazz summer league behind Philippowski, who was awesome. But one thing that Cody Williams really brings that I think was underrated last season was defense. He played solid defense at times and impactful defense at times. Now, it wasn’t great all the time and he had a really bad plus minus. Part of that was because he just kind of disappeared at times. But what if Cody Williams is a solid contributor? Like what if Cody Williams is really good in training camp and earns his way and his shooting gets more efficient and consistent? Then you could have, you know, I think Cody, from everything we’re seeing, from all the reporting, it really seems like Keonte George is getting that starting one spot and he’s going to be given a chance to prove it this season. It’s kind of a makeorb breakak year for Keonte George in a lot of way if he is going to be the starter for this team. But I could see a really fun lineup uh for the Utah Jazz if all these things pan out like we’re talking about. Keonte George at the one, Cody Williams at the two, Ace Bailey at the three, Taylor Hendricks at the four, Walker Kesler at the five. Now that’s really great. And if Utah traded Lowry Markin, and this is all hypothetical, you put in Jaden Ivy. Let’s say you have Jaden Ivy at the one, Cody Williams at the two. You have got incredible athletes at every single position. And that includes Walker Kesler. Walker Kesler has a lot to prove this season as well, by the way. Needs to prove that he is what he is, that he is a consistent night after night high impact player every single night. Not just on the nights you feel like it. When it’s game 58 on a backtoback in Minnesota, are you impacting the game the same way as game two in Utah when you’ve had plenty of sleep? You’ve got to be as good that night as you are the other. And that’s what makes the great players great. And if Utah has that type of athleticism all over the floor, things get interesting real quick, guys. this Jazz team gets really deep where you have on a you know let’s say Jaden Ivy Cody Williams let’s say all this is like pie in the sky everything works out perfect obviously this is like best case scenario that leaves you with a bench of Keonte George Bryce Sensaba Kyle Filipowski you have all these other veterans like an Kyle Anderson and George Nyang you’ve just got incredible depth and we haven’t even gotten to the full Jazz roster Right. Walter Clayton. What if Walter Clayton is great? You know, Utah has some incredible depth at that point. And it gets really exciting. Guys, we are going to start learning these things really quickly. In like two days, we get to see who that first starting lineup is. And that’s typically what you’re going to be looking at for the season. So, it’s huge. I am on pins and needles to find out what that first starting lineup is for preeason. starting to look pretty interesting based off of some of the different lineups we’ve seen from different scrimmages and practice plays. But this Utah Jazz team is going to be interesting. They’re going to be fun. Guys, that’s all I got. I’m so excited for basketball. I can’t believe it. Let me know what you guys think. What are your biggest whatifs for the season? What if there’s a huge trade? What does that mean? We’ve kind of talked about a potential one here. Let me know in the comments what you think. If you’re new here, like the video, subscribe to the channel. Let’s keep growing. Shout out to the Allstars. Shout out to everyone in the comments sections section. I appreciate you a lot.

The Utah Jazz have a huge season coming up, and they have a ton of questions that they have to answer. Those questions include questions about Ace Bailey, Taylor Hendricks, and Cody Williams/

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