My hot take on what I'd do in the off-season.

[LoPo]

I love our guy. But not sure how you rationalize this.

MJ had 3 losing seasons and was 1-9 in the playoffs. He had a 63 point game, but got swept.

LBJ didn't even make the playoffs until his third year.

Don was the first rookie since Wilt to lead his team to a playoff series win. He's the 3rd fastest all time to 5,000 points. He just set the record for most points ever scored in the first round of the playoffs. He just scored the 3rd most points in the history of playoff basketball.

Just for the first 3 seasons, he's had a top 3-5 start of all time. Better than legends.

 

[jom2003]

First thing I do - I offer Mitchell 5max. If he doesn't accept, ask him if he would accept any other offer and if he wants something like a 3 year deal I sign him to it and immediately start listening to trade offers for him(not actively searching for trades, but actively listening).

Second thing I do - figure out what the max would be that I would like to pay Gobert and offer something in that range to him. If he doesn't accept, immediately begin search for trade partner.

If none of them want to stay for what I offer them, start selling off the whole team. Ingles, Bogdanovic, Conley... all of them ... rebuild.

If Mitchell takes the 5max but Rudy doesn't take what I offer, trade Rudy either for high draft picks or win now pieces in the timeline of Mitchel. If we trade Rudy, I might actually do Conley for Horford. Or take Favors back. Or look for a trade for Gobert that includes a young-ish center in the timeline of Mitchell(Turner? Allen? Wendel Carter?)

If Rudy takes whatever offer we make but Mitchell doesn't - keep the team with hope for one more run next year... while listening to the market for Mitchell... If you love an offer take it and try to retool around Gobert for as long as we can be competitive... then... rebuild...

If both want to stay and seem like they want to work together, keep them and try to retool around them... find a longer and/or more athletic wing.

Yep. If I'm the GM I'd get ready to blow up this Jazz team at anytime now.
At this point it's not even a guarantee that we make it to the playoff next season with this current roster. Conley and Ingles will get older and become even more unplayable. Bojan is getting older and needs time to recover from a big surgery. Folks like Niang and Bradley won't become anything more than the end of bench guys. Royce would've sat at the end of the bench too if he isn't playing for us. Wouldn't be surprised to see the team struggle to find a playoff spot next season unless we work out some miracles this offseason

 

[Handlogten's Heros]

Let em fly, brother

You won't like them... it might start with Rudy and not giving him a max deal. The league just isn't in a place where he can have the impact and success he does in the regular season and duplicate it in the playoffs. We are seeing it with Giannis a little too. Instead of the unanimous MVP he is like a top 5 guy. Rudy might be a top 15regular season guy.. in the playoffs it might be top 30. He wasn't the reason we lost last night... but he also wasn't dominant like I'd like him to be and Jokic definitely ate.

There seems to be a ceiling there. If he can't dominate inside on the Nuggets and can't limit them or Jokic on offense that's a problem. There are too many teams that can pull him away from the basket and you will run into those teams in the playoffs at some point. Not that he gets played off the floor but if you are paying him as your 1st or 2nd best player that is hard.

I have a lot of thoughts on Mike but they aren't unique and likely things you've already heard from me.

 

[Handlogten's Heros]

Yep. If I'm the GM I'd get ready to blow up this Jazz team at anytime now.
At this point it's not even a guarantee that we make it to the playoff next season with this current roster. Conley and Ingles will get older and become even more unplayable. Bojan is getting older and needs time to recover from a big surgery. Folks like Niang and Bradley won't become anything more than the end of bench guys. Royce would've sat at the end of the bench too if he isn't playing for us. Wouldn't be surprised to see the team struggle to find a playoff spot next season unless we work out some miracles this offseason

Healthy Rudy and DM and we will make the playoffs. Rudy is fantastic in the regular season. The west will be a bloodbath and it might be close... but I'd bet we make the playoffs even without big changes.

 

[jom2003]

Healthy Rudy and DM and we will make the playoffs. Rudy is fantastic in the regular season. The west will be a bloodbath and it might be close... but I'd bet we make the playoffs even without big changes.

Then here comes my honest question: Which team would Steph/Klay Warriors replace? I'd say its either gonna be us or the Blazers. That is not taking the Suns and the Wolves into the equation.

 

[Bawse Dawg]

MJ had 3 losing seasons and was 1-9 in the playoffs. He had a 63 point game, but got swept.

LBJ didn't even make the playoffs until his third year.

Don was the first rookie since Wilt to lead his team to a playoff series win. He's the 3rd fastest all time to 5,000 points. He just set the record for most points ever scored in the first round of the playoffs. He just scored the 3rd most points in the history of playoff basketball.

Just for the first 3 seasons, he's had a top 3-5 start of all time. Better than legends.

Do actual stats or surrounding cast mean anything with this comparison? Jordan scored 63 in the Boston Garden against possibly the greatest team of all time. I'm not putting Mitchell's performance on that level.

We don't have to diminish what Don has done at all. He is incredible. But LeBron and MJ are LeBron and MJ. Even if everything else was equal, they are simply different specimens physically. Which says a lot about how Don makes it work with less, but those guys will always have a different kind of ceiling. These are the top 2 players ever not a fair comparison for anyone.

What I was seeing from Don this series is the next AI/Kobe type player. He has that mentality. The kind of player that fans of all teams love just because of their approach to the game (playing for the Jazz does him no favors there) he's impossible not to root for.

 

[jom2003]

Healthy Rudy and DM and we will make the playoffs. Rudy is fantastic in the regular season. The west will be a bloodbath and it might be close... but I'd bet we make the playoffs even without big changes.

Though I'd trust DM to be healthy, Rudy's clearly had his ups and downs with injuries. We'd definitely be in the conversation for the No1 pick next year if we are to lose Rudy

 

[Handlogten's Heros]

Then here comes my honest question: Which team would Steph/Klay Warriors replace? I'd say its either gonna be us or the Blazers. That is not taking the Suns and the Wolves into the equation.

OKC or Portland (only if Portland pivots)... could be Houston... that owner is crazy and they will have a new coach. Lose tonight and they could get wild.

 

[NAOS]

You won't like them... it might start with Rudy and not giving him a max deal. The league just isn't in a place where he can have the impact and success he does in the regular season and duplicate it in the playoffs. We are seeing it with Giannis a little too. Instead of the unanimous MVP he is like a top 5 guy. Rudy might be a top 15regular season guy.. in the playoffs it might be top 30. He wasn't the reason we lost last night... but he also wasn't dominant like I'd like him to be and Jokic definitely ate.

There seems to be a ceiling there. If he can't dominate inside on the Nuggets and can't limit them or Jokic on offense that's a problem. There are too many teams that can pull him away from the basket and you will run into those teams in the playoffs at some point. Not that he gets played off the floor but if you are paying him as your 1st or 2nd best player that is hard.

I have a lot of thoughts on Mike but they aren't unique and likely things you've already heard from me.

My mind is open to these things. Definitely open. I think part of the problem we have in the playoffs with Rudy can be summed up with a baseball metaphor: Rudy is a dominant starting pitcher, but we keep asking him to pitch complete games and the playoffs especially is about the flexibility of your bullpen. If we had the right 4-5 guy who could take some reps while Rudy played some possessions in the gaps, and if we got good at a zone scheme, then I think we could give teams some diversity of looks (a bullpen, if you will). Our self-same consistency around Rudy is theee main problem (—especially when he’s surrounded by mostly below-average defenders.

If we get him some help, and add some different coverages, then I think it’s worth it to keep going.

I agree full-on with your Snyder-as-vanilla take, so this plan is contingent on his evolution as much as anything.

 

[Roy_McAvoy]

I think the Pacers are a compelling trade partner for both sides. I think a trade could look something like this:

Jazz receive:
-Myles Turner
-Aaron Holiday (He's a big pick up because he can play PG and can shoot. He's young and on a cheap rookie contract. He adds cheap talent to Jazz with the possibility of keeping him long term if they choose to.)
-2021 2nd round draft pick

Pacers receive:
-Rudy Gobert
-Justin Wright Foreman

 

[NAOS]

Mostly run it back. It's just clearly the best option unless management has some miracle trade up their sleeve.

Start Mike doe it ain’t even debatable amiright lol #

 

[jom2003]

OKC or Portland (only if Portland pivots)... could be Houston... that owner is crazy and they will have a new coach. Lose tonight and they could get wild.

OKC would only get better over time with their young talents and all the picks they've had, whereas the only one on our team who we can trust to become better is Donovan. Houston won't miss the playoffs as long as Harden keeps showing up for games at his current %.