19. Utah Jazz

By: Lucas Kochevar

        The Jazz are in a very difficult predicament. They still want to remain competitive, but they lost their star player in Gordon Hayward. They also lost their starting PG in George Hill. They did make up for the lost of Hill by trading for Ricky Rubio. They quickly made sure that they locked up Joe Ingles for four years after Hayward left. They made some noise in the playoffs, but they should experience a step back with the lost of their star. This is their projected starting lineup. 

PG: Ricky Rubio
SG: Rodney Hood
SF: Joe Ingles 
PF: Derrick Favors
C: Rudy Gobert

6th Man: Joe Johnson/Alec Burks

        The Jazz have a good PG in Ricky Rubio. He is truly one of the best passers in the league, but outside of that he is not very great. He is not a great shooter but he can be a serviceable replacement for George Hill. The backup will be Dante Exum or Raul Neto. The SG will be Rodney Hood, who is one of the most underrated players in the NBA right now. If Alec Burks is healthy then he will be the backup. The SF position is held by Joe Ingles as he just signed his new contract. He might move to the PF position if Donovan Mitchell or Thabo Sefolosha rise to become good options. Derrick Favors has been okay as a starter, but he has been hurt a good amount of last season. Rudy Gobert is the starting center and he is the new heart and soul of the team. He is also the defensive anchor of the Jazz. The Jazz will not be a playoff team like they were last year. The Jazz will need to add a new star or solid piece in order to make the playoffs.