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Back at it Dub Nation, taking a virtual tour around the NBA’s offseason division by division to see what’s happening. The Golden State Warriors are trying to recapture their championship magic against a bunch of teams that are more than happy to put the dynasty to sleep for good. We’re still cruising through the Northwest division, so let’s talk some Utah Jazz basketball.
Last year the Dubs went 3-1 against Utah, beating them pretty much at will as the Jazz’s season spiraled into the dumpster. When I was a kid, the Jazz were a respectable franchise battling Michael Jordan’s Bulls in the NBA Finals. Even when Karl Malone and John Stockton left, they still had dudes like Deron Williams, Carlos Boozer, and Andrei Kirilenko making noise. Utah fell off though. Last year they finished 22-60, tied for the worst record in the West. They landed the No. 2 pick and used it on Kansas guard Darryn Peterson, an electric player sure to bring some excitement to Salt Lake City.
Peterson wasn’t even the first sign Utah was serious about this. Back in February they traded for two-time All-Star Jaren Jackson Jr. while they were still tanking their way to that No. 2 pick. That’s not something rebuilding teams usually do in the middle of a lottery push, and it tells you the front office had already decided the losing was over on a timer.
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Then the front office got weird with it, in a good way. Utah agreed to a sign-and-trade sending Walker Kessler to the Lakers for two unprotected first-round picks and two additional swaps. They also brought back Jusuf Nurkic on a two-year deal and added Jaxson Hayes, so the center spot goes from “Kessler starts” to “whoever’s healthier between two guys who used to be backups.” Check out what Jazz blog SLC Dunk has to feel about it:
There’s no doubt that Utah will miss some of the elements of Kessler’s game, mostly on the defensive end. Although, Utah has set themselves up to be one of the most lethal offenses in the league and Jusuf Nurkic will be a major part of it.
Nurkic has a surprisingly good steal rate for his position and is a legitimate weapon assisting the ball in the Jazz…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/northwest-division-watch-jazz-activating-211124309.html
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Publish date : 2026-08-30 21:11:00
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