The Utah Jazz missed the playoffs for the fourth straight season in 2016, the longest streak since the franchise moved to Utah. This is unfamiliar territory for a team that once went two decades without missing the postseason. The playoff push went right down to the final day of the regular season, and the Jazz controlled their own destiny as late as the last week.

Utah’s core group of players, Gordon Hayward, Derrick Favors, and Rudy Gobert, has been together three seasons now. Hayward and Favors now have six years in Utah together and several role players like Alec Burks, Rodney Hood and Trey Burke have been around for at least a couple of seasons. The main point is that the Jazz are no longer a young up and coming team. They are now a veteran squad that has disappointed for two straight seasons by not making the playoffs.

Two years ago was a year of growth as young players settled into their roles and the team made a run at the post-season. This past season was ruined by injuries; Favors and Gobert both missed a quarter of the season, Burks missed over half the year, and Dante Exum missed the entire season recovering from the torn ACL he suffered while playing with the Australian national team. Exum is young enough that he should be able to bounce back and Favors and Gobert have been generally healthy, so they should also be fine. Burks is a major concern, however, as he has now missed significant time in four of five NBA seasons.

Should the Jazz enjoy better health, they have as much of a chance to make a leap forward and into the playoffs next year. They have eleven players on guaranteed contracts, which is tied with Minnesota for the most in the league. Burks is the only player who is on a questionable contract, and if he can stay relatively healthy, his deal is fine for a sixth man on the wing. All of the other players are on pacts where they provide Utah with great value for what they are paid, although Hayward and Gobert could be entering their final guaranteed years with the Jazz.

With four of five starting positions (Hayward, Favors, Gobert, and Hood) and three key bench spots (Burks, Shelvin Mack, and Trey Lyles) locked in, Utah projects to have a lot of money to spend with very few openings to fill. The obvious glaring hole is at the starting PG position. Mack did a nice job after coming over at the trade deadline, but he’s more of a backup/spot starter than a true frontline player. The Jazz best hope is that Exum bounces back and is ready to take the starting role and runs with it. He showed more or less what was expected as a 19 year old rookie in the 2015 season. He flashed terrific athleticism and playmaking ability, offset by typical rookie mistakes and a broken jumper. If Exum can come back and give Utah 25 MPG, it would be huge in helping solidify a position that has been a problem since the Deron Williams' trade.

In a lot of ways, Utah could be an ideal destination for Mike Conley if he was to move on from Memphis. He would give the Jazz a veteran leader in the lead guard role and would add some shooting and playmaking. If Utah is giving the starting role to Exum instead of a veteran, and they want to upgrade the backup role from Mack, Jeremy Lin, Jerryd Bayless or D.J. Augustin could be options.

Should Utah want to shift Hood to a sixth man role and add depth, they could be a destination for Harrison Barnes. Barnes would fit in very well with the current players due to his versatility. If Hood is the starter and they wanted to add some bench depth, players like Eric Gordon, Kevin Martin, O.J. Mayo and Gerald Henderson are all solid options.

Getting a quality backup who can play the stretch 4 role is also key, given the recent health concerns with Favors and Gobert. There are good possibilities available in guys like Ryan Anderson, Jared Dudley, Mirza Teletovic and Brandon Bass (assuming he opts out). All of those guys would give the Jazz a bit of a different look as they have more range on their jumper than the current bigs on the roster. Utah also likes Trevor Booker, so a return engagement from him is also a potential option. Whoever is brought in, the team will make sure to leave plenty of minutes available for Trey Lyles, who showed plenty of potential on both ends of the floor as a rookie.

Adding to what Utah can do to help themselves is the inevitable decline of some teams in front of them in the standings. Dallas, Houston, and Memphis could all fall back in the standings. Teams like Oklahoma City and LA Clippers could also look drastically different from this season to the next, which could lead to drop off. It is important that Utah doesn’t focus solely on catching those in front of them as Minnesota and Denver can close the gap rapidly, and the Pelicans and Lakers are positioned to bounce back quickly from poor season to making playoff pushes of their own.

The Jazz are as well positioned as anyone to add talent in trade, with plenty of assets in terms of young talent, draft picks, and cap space. The challenge for Utah, with both free agents and in the trade market, is that Salt Lake City isn’t exactly a free agent destination. The Jazz have historically built their rosters through the draft and supplemented with trades for veterans and the occasional free agent signing. However, with a smart front office led by Dennis Lindsey and Kevin O’Connor and a good young coach in Quin Snyder, in addition to their solid asset base and cap space, Utah is positioned to add a piece or two and finally take the last step back to the playoffs.

Offseason Details

Guaranteed Contracts (11): Trey Burke, Alex Burks, Dante Exum, Derrick Favors, Rudy Gobert, Gordon Hayward, Rodney Hood, Joe Ingles, Trey Lyles, Raul Neto, Tibor Pleiss

Partial/Non-Guaranteed Contracts (3): Christapher Johnson, Shelvin Mack, Jeff  Withey

Potential Free Agents (1): Trevor Booker (UFA)

“Dead” Money on Cap (0): None

First Round Draft Picks (as of 5/1/16): #12

Maximum Cap Space: $34,895,769

Projected Cap Space: $22,799,849