The Utah Jazz have an immensely deep and talented roster. Unfortunately, this means that eventually, they won’t be able to pay anybody. Rudy Gobert just got his contract extended in a major way; the Jazz locked the star shot-blocker up for four years at a price tag north of $100 million. Next, the Jazz will look to extend the contract of either point guard George Hill or power forward Derrick Favors, reports ESPN’s Marc Stein:
The Utah Jazz currently possess more than $13 million in cap space, which makes them even more interesting to watch than they already are when they play.
Reason being: Utah’s cap space can be used to make a robust in-season extension offer to either point guard George Hill or big man Derrick Favors.
And …
According to the latest rumbles in circulation on the matter, Hill has emerged as Utah’s priority here.
This is an interesting report. It can is probably true that Hill — who is enjoying the finest season of his eight-year career — is more valuable to the Jazz right now than Favors is (though Favors is highly valuable as well). However, Hill is 30, and Favors is 25. Stein’s report shows Utah’s interest in winning now. Hill is a battle-tested veteran who has been to the playoffs seven times. Another factor in this decision could be the presence of Favors’ talented backup (Trey Lyles) on the roster. Lyles is an exceptional young player capable of scoring inside and out. He’s not an amazing defender, but having Gobert patrolling the paint should balance that out. It wouldn’t be a shock for the Jazz to decide that Lyles is their power forward of the future, not Favors.
