How will Gordon Hayward, Rudy Gobert and the Utah Jazz do in 2016-17?
Here are our player scouting reports and analysis.
Projected starters
George Hill
Position: Guard
Experience: 8 years
Age: 30
Scouting report
+ Point guard who is comfortable playing off the ball
+ Good 3-point shooter coming off career year beyond arc
+ Versatile defender who plays bigger than size
Analysis
Who says blondes have more fun? A dye job couldn't keep Hill's role from changing for the worse during what turned out to be his last year with the Indiana Pacers. After averaging a career-high 16.1 points per game in 2014-15, Hill was moved off the ball by the addition of Monta Ellis and return of Paul George. Then the Pacers decided they wanted a more creative playmaker at the position and shipped Hill to the Jazz in a three-team trade that makes him Utah's starting point guard until Dante Exum is ready to reclaim the position.
While Hill might like to prove that he can be effective creating offense during the final year of his contract, his role with the Jazz is likely to look more like the one he played last season. Hill can be capable there, too. He's a career 37.6 percent 3-point shooter who hit better than 40 percent (40.8) for the first time in 2015-16, so Hill is a threat spotting up, particularly from the corners (where he shot 44.5 percent last season, per Basketball-Reference.com). Still, he showed in 2014-15, when his usage rate (23.8 percent) and assist rate (6.3 per 36 minutes) were both career highs, that he could do more.
Hill was a key part of some of the league's best defenses in Indiana, and his arrival figures to help Utah move into that class. Standing 6-foot-3 with a 6-foot-9 wingspan, Hill is big enough to defend either guard spot and hold his own in a switching defense. Well schooled in defensive technique, Hill works hard to avoid being screened on the ball. ESPN's real plus-minus (RPM) rates Hill a top-15 point guard defensively and a huge upgrade on the smaller players who manned the position for the Jazz in 2015-16.
Rodney Hood
Position: Guard
Experience: 2 years
Age: 23
Scouting report
+ Big wing player with ballhandling skills
+ Can run a pick-and-roll or spot up for 3s
+ Solid individual defender with size advantage
Analysis
Hood started 79 games in Year 2, firmly establishing himself as part of Utah's core at age 23 (he'll be 24 in October). His ability to handle the ball was a big reason the Jazz overcame their weak point guard rotation last season and played without one at times. According to Synergy Sports tracking, Hood (635) and small forward Gordon Hayward (701) ran the most pick-and-rolls for Utah last season, both totals among the top 12 non-wing players in the league.
Hood rarely gets to the basket using exceptional quickness or athleticism. Instead, he relies on the ability to play at his own pace with hesitation moves while remaining under control. Those drives more typically generate more in-between shots than finishes at the rim, and Hood ranked in the league's 25 in field goals in the paint outside the restricted area. The lefty is also a good outside shooter who shot 44.9 percent on 2-point attempts outside the paint and 35.9 percent from 3-point range, though he's never been able to sustain briefly elite shooting (he made 46.2 percent of his 3s in January, averaging 18.6 points per game) for a full season.
At 6-foot-8, Hood has enough size to guard either wing spot and moves well enough laterally to defend point guards at times, too. He executes the scheme and rarely gets out of position defensively, though he's also unlikely to contribute game-changing plays.
Gordon Hayward
Position: Forward
Experience: 6 years
Age: 26
Scouting report
+ Versatile wing player who can lead an offense
+ Good finisher and fine playmaker from the wing
+ Capable of defending stretch-4s and point guards
Analysis
In his prime at age 26, Hayward has established himself as one of the NBA's top wing players and put himself in position for a big payday next summer, when he can opt to become a free agent. Hayward could solidify his spot if he parlays improvement by the Jazz into a first trip to the All-Star Game.
After early growing pains as a shot creator, Hayward has settled into a comfortable role as the first option in a balanced Utah offense. He's used better than a quarter of the team's plays the past two seasons with true shooting percentages solidly above league average (.559 in 2015-16). Somewhat surprisingly, Hayward has never become a major 3-point threat (his 34.9 percent mark last season, down slightly from 36 percent career, was almost precisely average). But Hayward has developed into an excellent playmaker off the dribble, capable of getting to the basket and finishing or finding teammates (3.7 assists per 36 minutes).
While Hayward isn't an elite individual defender, his size and athleticism allow him to defend multiple positions. He can hold his own at either wing spot, slide down to power forward in certain matchups -- something the Jazz have rarely taken advantage of because of their frontcourt depth, but might now that Hayward has added more muscle -- and even defend point guards. Hayward no longer blocks shots as often as in his early days, when he was one of the NBA's top chasedown specialists, and his steal rate declined last season.
Derrick Favors
Position: Forward
Experience: 6 years
Age: 25
Scouting report
+ Combo big man who is a plus at either position
+ Excellent finisher who can post up most power forwards
+ Mobile defender who blocks enough shots to anchor defense
Analysis
Already a six-year NBA veteran at age 25, Favors has established himself as a solid 16-point, eight-rebound a game contributor who has the ability to play both frontcourt spots effectively. Though Favors still has two years left on his contract, since he's making just $23 million over that span, he could be a candidate for a renegotiation and extension that would lock him in past the summer of 2018 at a below-max rate.
Favors creates a reasonable number of his own shots for a big man. Besides putbacks, those come mostly in the post, where he scored twice as many points (198) as the rest of the Jazz combined (97), according to Synergy Sports tracking on NBA.com/Stats. Favors has a little hook with either hand and likes to face up slower defenders when playing center to use his quickness. Favors is also Utah's best option in the pick-and-roll game, though the presence of Rudy Gobert around the basket sometimes forces him to pop to the perimeter. Favors is less effective there, having shot just 33.1 percent on 2-point attempts beyond 16 feet, per Basketball-Reference.com.
Favors' versatility is valuable defensively, as he can swing between the two frontcourt spots depending on teammates. He's a strong pick-and-roll defender who can capably switch out on guards -- a particularly effective weapon at center -- but he is also a shot-blocking presence. Playing alongside Gobert depresses Favors' individual stats. He averaged 9.9 rebounds and 1.9 blocks per 36 minutes with Gobert on the bench, per NBA.com/Stats, as compared to 8.2 and 1.3 playing with him. But the Jazz's defense is 2.0 points better per 100 possessions with Favors and Gobert, and somewhat surprisingly, Utah scores better with both big men despite limited floor spacing.
Rudy Gobert
Position: Center
Experience: 3 years
Age: 24
Scouting report
+ Giant French center whose progress stalled in first full season as starter
+ Mechanical offensive player with almost no shooting range
+ League's premier rim protector also boasts surprising mobility
Analysis
Having led the Jazz's surge as a starter after the 2014-15 trade deadline, Gobert put together nearly an identical campaign in his first full season as a starter, both before and after a sprained MCL that sidelined him for a month. Given Gobert was just 23 (he's since turned 24), that qualified as a mild disappointment. Still, expect Gobert to get maxed out with an extension by Oct. 31 or more likely next summer as a restricted free agent with a tiny cap hold.
Gobert's block rate declined from a league-leading 7.0 percent of opponents' 2-point attempts in 2014-15 to 5.9 percent last season, but don't be fooled -- he was still the NBA's best rim protector. Opponents made a league-low 41.0 percent of their attempts within five feet with Gobert as a primary defender, per SportVU data on NBA.com/Stats. Compared to most such players, Gobert is relatively adept at defending away from the basket, though he's certainly still vulnerable to giving up pull-up jumpers in the pick-and-roll and uncomfortable when dragged to the perimeter by stretch-5s. Overall, Gobert's plus-3.9 defensive RPM ranked eighth in the NBA.
There's still plenty of room for improvement for Gobert on offense, where opponents started defending him with power forwards so they could use centers against Favors to neutralize his post-up game. While Gobert shows some promise as a passer (he averaged a credible 1.7 assists per 36 minutes), he's not a scoring threat at all away from the perimeter. Gobert shot 22.9 percent on attempts beyond 3 feet last season, per Basketball-Reference.com, which was actually a slight improvement on his 21.7 percent mark in 2014-15. And while Gobert can make smaller defenders pay on the offensive glass, he doesn't really have any semblance of a post game, making those crossmatches an effective option.
Reserves
Dante Exum
Position: Guard
Experience: 1 year
Age: 21
Scouting report
+ Big, quick point guard returning from ACL injury
+ Played mostly off the ball during rookie season
+ Size and quickness give him elite defensive potential
Analysis
Utah's 2015-16 season took a huge hit in early August, when Exum tore his ACL while playing in an exhibition game for the Australian National Team, ending his campaign before it began. More than a year later, Exum has yet to play in a competitive game since the injury, but he told the NBPA's Twitter account in August he's "fully recovered" heading into training camp. Exum figures to start the season behind Hill at point guard, but he could reclaim his starting job at some point during the year.
Still just 21, Exum matured physically during the year he spent on the sidelines and added strength to his lean, 6-foot-6 frame. Presuming Exum hasn't lost the quickness that made him a special prospect, that could be beneficial at the defensive end of the court, where he gives the Jazz the kind of size against point guards most teams have to crossmatch to get. Utah allowed 5.6 fewer points per 100 possessions with Exum in the lineup during 2014-15, per NBA.com/Stats.
A point guard in name only as a rookie, Exum delegated most playmaking duties to the Jazz's wings as he spotted up in the corner. Just a 31.4 percent 3-point shooter in 2014-15, Exum might not improve much because players coming off ACL injuries tend to be inaccurate at first. However, Exum might be more creative as a playmaker. In the one game he played in the Utah Jazz Summer League in 2015, Exum spent more time attacking off the pick-and-roll and attempted 10 free throws -- nearly one-third his entire total (32) in 82 games during 2014-15 -- en route to 20 points and five assists.
Joe Johnson
Position: Forward
Experience: 15 years
Age: 35
Scouting report
+ Veteran shooting guard who has aged into a combo forward
+ Remains a strong catch-and-shoot option from 3-point range
+ Has lost lateral quickness on defense but strong for size
Analysis
Only Kobe Bryant made more money than Johnson last season, but his exorbitant six-year, $124 million contract came to an early end when Johnson agreed with the Brooklyn Nets on a buyout. He signed for the veteran's minimum in Miami and helped the Heat reach the conference semifinals, building his value for free agency. Johnson got a two-year, $22 million deal to supply outside shooting and veteran leadership in Utah.
Though Iso Joe is mostly a thing of the past, Johnson showed in Miami he can still create his own shot. After making just 42.7 percent of his 2-point attempts with the Nets, Johnson surged to 56.9 percent with the Heat. Surely, that's partially a fluke. (He settled in at 49.1 percent in the playoffs.) But Johnson also benefited from facing opponents' weaker wing defender alongside Dwyane Wade, scoring effectively out of pick-and-rolls, post-ups (he shot 54.8 percent on them in Miami, per Synergy Sports tracking) and, yes, isolations. Johnson might not have the same post-up opportunities against Utah wings, but he should draw slower defenders. And his 3-point shooting (38.3 percent last year, 37.2 percent career) will help space the floor.
Johnson is now miscast as a shooting guard defensively. With the Heat, he mostly guarded small forwards and at times power forwards when he crossmatched with Luol Deng. At 6-foot-7, Johnson has always had forward size, and he's also physically strong and a good enough defensive rebounder to hold his own at both forward spots. Johnson tends to get in trouble defensively when opponents can get him on the move or going side to side defending the ball.
Alec Burks
Position: Guard
Experience: 5 years
Age: 25
Scouting report
+ Shooting guard who wants the ball in his hands
+ May be developing into accurate outside shooter
+ Has good size but below average defensively
Analysis
This feels like a pivotal season for Burks, who has played just 58 games over the past two seasons due to injuries (and underwent postseason ankle surgery in July). Even before suffering the fractured fibula in late December that sidelined him through April, however, Burks was playing fewer minutes per game (27.1) than the previous two seasons. The return of Exum and arrival of Johnson creates increased competition for playing time on the perimeter.
To get his three best perimeter players on the court, coach Quin Snyder occasionally used Burks as a point guard alongside Hayward and Hood, sharing ballhandling duties among the three players. Those lineups were outscored by 5.0 points per 100 possessions in limited minutes, per NBA.com/Stats and are unlikely to return this year.
Playing strictly shooting guard probably means more time off the ball for Burks, and that might not be such a bad thing. While he's evolved into an accurate, if not exactly prolific, 3-point shooter (39.5 percent the past two seasons over 147 attempts), Burks has still been an inefficient scorer because of his willingness to pull up off the dribble from midrange. He shot just 33.7 percent on pull-up 2-point attempts last season, according to SportVU data on NBA.com/Stats. Early in his career, Burks excelled at getting all the way to the hoop and finishing, but he's gotten fewer of those easy scores recently as his 2-point percentage has dipped to the low 40s.
At 6-foot-6, Burks has good size and athleticism defensively as a shooting guard, but has never been particularly engaged at that end of the court. He did grab defensive rebounds at a career-best rate last season.
Trey Lyles
Position: Forward
Experience: 1 year
Age: 20
Scouting report
+ Skilled power forward with decent size and athleticism
+ Pick-and-pop player who added 3-point range as rookie
+ Mobile defender who doesn't yet play with much force
Analysis
As a 20-year-old rookie, Lyles played in 80 games and started 33 times due to injuries in the frontcourt. While his game is still very much a work in progress, Lyles showed the potential to become an intriguing complement to Favors and Gobert as part of the Jazz's rotation up front.
For someone 6-foot-10, 234 pounds, Lyles is precociously skilled. Having made just four 3-pointers in 29 attempts during his lone season at Kentucky, Lyles worked to develop NBA 3-point range over the course of his rookie year, starting in the corner and moving about the break. He made more 3s in 30 games after the All-Star break (29) than in 50 before it (20), ending up shooting 38.3 percent beyond the arc. Lyles was less effective around the basket, shooting 57.3 percent inside 3 feet, according to Basketball-Reference.com. He's not explosive in traffic.
Lyles also handles the ball well for a big man and has even run pick-and-rolls as a ballhandler in summer-league settings. Utah turned him loose as the primary option on this year's summer squad and saw Lyles average 23.8 points per game, albeit on just 39.0 percent shooting. That's OK, since Lyles won't be asked to carry such a heavy load in the regular season any time soon.
Having played small forward in college, Lyles has nimble feet and can switch on guards as necessary. He shows promise showing and recovering against the pick-and-roll as well. Now, Lyles needs to be able to play with more force as a help defender. He'd be in the right place as a rookie but fail to impact the shot attempt, so opponents shot 55.0 percent against him within 5 feet, per SportVU tracking on NBA.com/Stats.
Boris Diaw
Position: Forward
Experience: 13 years
Age: 34
Scouting report
+ Versatile veteran big man transitioning to smaller role
+ Remains an effective post-up player and passer
+ Has lost some of the quickness that helped on D
Analysis
After four-plus years with the San Antonio Spurs that resulted in two trips to the Finals and a championship, Diaw was dealt to Utah in a move that cleared cap room for San Antonio to sign Pau Gasol. Already, there were signs Diaw was on the outs. The 18.2 minutes per game Diaw averaged last year tied a career low, and he did not play in the Spurs' final game of the playoffs at San Antonio. Diaw projects as a fourth big man for the Jazz whose role may depend on how quickly Lyles develops in Year 2.
The multiskilled Diaw actually had a strong offensive season. His ability to score on bigger defenders in the post using stepthroughs, spin moves and sealing to create position is remarkable. Per Synergy Sports tracking on NBA.com/Stats, Diaw's 62.8 percent shooting on post-ups was best among players with at least 100 attempts. Playing alongside Utah's starters, Diaw is more likely to spend time on the perimeter. While he attempted just 79 3-pointers last season, Diaw made them at a 36.2 percent clip, and he's good a passer as any big man, averaging 4.6 assists per 36 minutes -- more than former Jazz point guard Trey Burke (3.9) last season.
Diaw's decline in his mid-30s has been more evident at the defensive end, where he's relied on quickness to compensate for playing center at 6-foot-8. Diaw virtually never blocks shots and is a poor defensive rebounder, which might make it difficult to play him with Lyles. Utah may be better off playing Diaw with Gobert (his teammate on the French National Team) and Lyles with Favors along the lines of how Mike Budenholzer has used his big men with the Atlanta Hawks.
Joe Ingles
Position: Forward
Experience: 2 years
Age: 28
Scouting report
+ Left-handed Australian wing who likes physical play
+ Solid open 3-point shooter who can handle the ball
+ Has enough size to defend smallball power forwards
Analysis
After starting 32 games in his first NBA season, Ingles found a more appropriate reserve role last season. The Jazz loading up on the perimeter means Ingles might end up out of the rotation entirely when the team is healthy, making him valuable insurance.
With another year to adjust to the NBA 3-point line, Ingles shot 38.6 percent from beyond the arc last season -- including 49.4 percent from the corners, per Basketball-Reference.com -- though he's still too reluctant to pull the trigger. In fact, Ingles is one of the worst practitioners of what podcaster Nate Duncan has termed the "record scratch" -- when the ball is swung to a wide-open shooter who neither shoots nor attacks off the dribble. Ingles is capable of making a play off the dribble, albeit not very quickly, and he's a fabulous finisher when he gets to the rim. Ingles has shot 74.0 percent inside 3 feet the past two seasons.
Ingles has proved a capable defender. He's not overmatched against quicker wings and has enough strength at 6-foot-8 to slide down to power forward in certain matchups. The one issue there is that Ingles is a poor defensive rebounder for a small forward, let alone a power forward. But he also has good anticipation and has maintained an above-average steal rate.
Shelvin Mack
Position: Guard
Experience: 5 years
Age: 26
Scouting report
+ Steady backup PG who played key role after trade
+ Low-efficiency scorer capable of creating shots
+ Hard-working defender with good size for position
Analysis
Playing behind Jeff Teague and Dennis Schroder, Mack had seen just 179 minutes of action before being dealt by the Atlanta Hawks to Utah at the trade deadline. It took Mack seven games with the Jazz to beat that total, as he quickly claimed the starting job at point guard and averaged 31.4 minutes per game. Now, Exum's return and the arrival of Hill figure to push Mack back to third on the depth chart in a contract year. Eventually, that could mean another trade to a team in need of point guard help.
In addition to starting, Mack also played a surprisingly large role in Utah's offense, finishing 22.2 percent of the team's plays. Because he's not a good 3-point shooter (32.4 percent career) and rarely gets to the free throw line (1.9 times per 36 minutes), Mack will probably never score with anything close to average efficiency. But he demonstrated with the Jazz that he can ramp up his offense without sacrificing what efficiency he does have. As a playmaker, Mack is average to slightly below.
A well-built 6-foot-3, Mack brought more size to Utah than previous point guards Burke and Raul Neto. In fact, the Jazz even used him alongside them as a shooting guard on rare occasions. That's a stretch, but at point guard Mack contains ballhandlers well and is a contributor on the defensive glass.
Jeff Withey
Position: Center
Experience: 3 years
Age: 26
Scouting report
+ Fine shot-blocker with limited mobility
+ Limited offensive player who sticks to role
+ Below-average defensive rebounder
Analysis
Withey was a pleasant surprise for the Jazz last season, winning a roster spot in training camp and going on to start 10 games when Gobert was sidelined. He provides a reasonable facsimile of Gobert's rim protection, albeit with more limitations. Though Withey's 2016-17 salary is non-guaranteed, Utah cleared a spot for him on the roster by giving up two second-round picks to clear Tibor Pleiss' salary off the books.
Actually, Withey blocked a higher percentage of opponents' 2-point shots (6.8 percent) than Gobert (5.9) last season. A volleyball player through his teenage years, Withey has great timing as a shot blocker. Opponents shot little better within five feet against Withey (43.1 percent, third among players with at least four such attempts per game) than Gobert, per SportVU data on NBA.com/Stats. Withey can get in trouble defending on the perimeter. He's a little jumpy going for pump fakes and doesn't have the lateral mobility or balance to contain guards off the dribble. Withey's pursuit of blocks also makes him a below-average defensive rebounder.
On offense, Withey rarely tries to do too much. Nearly 60 percent of his shot attempts last season came within 3 feet, and though Withey isn't explosive in traffic, he still made 65.3 percent of those shots, according to Basketball-Reference.com. Withey will occasionally venture to the midrange and is an accurate shooter to about 15 feet. The less he handles the ball, the better.
Raul Neto
Position: Guard
Experience: 1 year
Age: 24
Scouting report
+ Small, pass-first point guard overmatched as starter
+ Proved surprisingly accurate 3-point shooter
+ Likes to pressure ballhandlers on defense
Analysis
When the Jazz signed Neto to a three-year, $3 million deal last summer, it was with the expectation he'd be the team's third point guard. Then Exum got hurt and Utah wanted to bring Burke off the bench, leaving Neto to start 53 games as an NBA rookie. That was too much to ask but Neto showed he can stick in the league in a smaller role.
Just a 29.6 percent career shooter in the Spanish ACB from the shorter FIBA line, Neto unexpectedly hit 39.5 percent of his 3s in 2015-16 on a decent sample (162 attempts) using something of a set shot. That was helpful because Neto spent much of his time spotting up while Hayward and Hood ran the offense. Neto has good court vision but struggled to score off the dribble, shooting just 42.5 percent on such 2-point attempts according to SportVU data on NBA.com/Stats. He also was problematically turnover prone given how little he handled the ball, committing 2.6 per 36 minutes.
At 6-foot-1, 179, Neto gave up size to the opposing point guard most nights. That made it difficult for him to contest shots and play through screens, and Neto was basically a non-factor as a help defender and on the glass. However, he was effective at pressuring ballhandlers as they brought the ball upcourt and forced steals at a decent rate.
Joel Bolomboy
Position: Forward
Experience: Rookie
Age: 22
Scouting report
+ Long, active power forward who developed late
+ Good offensive rebounder who was college post threat
+ One of nation's best defensive rebounders
Analysis
The Jazz didn't have to go far to scout Bolomboy, who starred at Weber State about 30 miles north of Salt Lake City. Utah took Bolomboy with the first of three second-round picks at No. 52 and signed him to a three-year contract with more than a million in guaranteed money. That means Bolomboy has a spot on the roster, though he'll probably spend most of this year playing for the team's D-League affiliate, which is moving to Salt Lake.
Bolomboy dramatically increased his production as an upperclassmen, nearly doubling his scoring average from 8.7 points per game as a sophomore to 17.1 as a senior, when he was the Big Sky's Player of the Year. A lot of that production came in the post, something that probably won't be a weapon for Bolomboy in the NBA. His offensive rebounding and putbacks should translate over. Bolomboy has also attempted to add 3-point range, making 20 as a senior despite unorthodox form, and showed good feel for the pick-and-roll game during summer league.
If Bolomboy's going to become a rotation player, it will probably be more because of his energy than his skill. He ranked in the nation's top five in defensive rebound percentage in 2015-16, pulling down more than 30 percent of available misses. A wingspan near 7-foot-2 should help Bolomboy on defense, though he wasn't a notable shot blocker in college for a power forward.
Chris Johnson
Position: Guard
Experience: 4 years
Age: 26
Scouting report
+ Wing tweener with limited offensive game
+ Hasn't been able to consistently make 3-pointers
+ Has good lateral quickness, but undersized for small forward
Analysis
Johnson stuck on the Jazz roster all last season on a non-guaranteed deal, beating out defensive specialist Elijah Millsap for wing playing time, but his Utah days are numbered with 14 guaranteed contracts on the roster, plus Withey. Though he's useful in a deep reserve role, Johnson no longer offers much upside at age 26 and might be headed overseas.
The biggest problem for Johnson is that more than half his NBA shots have been 3-pointers and he hasn't made enough of them. A 33.8 percent shooter his first two years, Johnson has slipped below 30 percent since and the Jazz's effort to rebuild his shooting form didn't take. As a result, Johnson posted the worst true shooting percentage of his four-year NBA career (.482).
As a defender, Johnson is good but not great. He moves his feet well and was effective defending point guards when Utah put him in that role, including finishing some games as part of a triple-wing lineup with Hayward and Hood. But at 6-foot-6, Johnson is a bit too small to defend elite wings, preventing him from being considered a stopper.
Marcus Paige
Position: Guard
Experience: Rookie
Age: 22
Scouting report
+ Combo guard with history of making big shots in college
+ Size likely limits him to point guard in the NBA
Analysis
In another world, Paige was the hero of the NCAA title game. He scored 21 points and tied the game for North Carolina with a double-clutch 3-pointer with 4.7 seconds remaining, only to see Villanova's Kris Jenkins win the game at the buzzer. The NCAA tournament run capped Paige's strong college career. He was drafted by the Jazz No. 55 and got $125,000 guaranteed to come to training camp, per Eric Pincus of BasketballInsiders.com -- almost certainly a supplement to his salary when he's cut and assigned to the Salt Lake City Stars of the D-League.
To stick in the NBA, Paige will have to show he can play point guard. A skinny 6-foot-2, he's too small to defend shooting guards and doesn't quite have the playmaking instincts of a full-time point guard. Playing alongside ballhandling wings like Utah has would be ideal for Paige. The southpaw must also work on his right hand and develop his finishing after shooting 33.3 percent on 2-point attempts during summer-league play.
Quincy Ford
Position: Forward
Experience: Rookie
Age: 23
Scouting report
+ Big wing with ballhandling ability
+ Must prove he can make NBA 3-pointer
Analysis
Overshadowed at Northeastern by teammate David Walker, Ford nonetheless caught the eye of Jazz scouts. He played for the team in summer league and is headed to training camp on a multiyear deal with $75,000 guaranteed, according to the Salt Lake Tribune. Utah will likely look to develop Ford in the D-League. Never a particularly efficient scorer in college, Ford will have to become a more reliable 3-point shooter to accomplish that as a pro.