Jazz projected lineup and rotations heading into 2023-24 season
Utah Jazz starting small forward: Lauri Markkanen
The Jazz found their franchise cornerstone sooner than expected in Lauri Markkanen. He was legitimately one of the most efficient and effective isolation scorers in the NBA last season, an outcome few could have predicted after his successful but mostly vanilla stretch in Cleveland. It all started with a torrid summer with the Finnish national team, and Markkanen carried that momentum into the regular season.
Still 26 years old, the former No. 7 pick has his entire prime in front of him. Markkanen averaged 25.6 points and 8.6 rebounds on .499/.391/.875 splits, complementing his long-revered 3-point shot with remarkable success as a driver and pull-up artist in the mid-range. Markkanen is a legitimate 7-footer, capable of navigating tight spaces off the dribble and picking apart defenders with precise, balletic footwork.
While not a wing stopper by any means, Markkanen can hang on the perimeter defensively. He spent his Cleveland tenure in three-big lineups next to Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley and will do the same in Utah next season following the John Collins trade. The Jazz will look to overwhelm opponents with length on defense while still packing a potent punch on offense.
Markkanen still has room to grow as a playmaker for others — he averaged the same number of assists (1.9) as turnovers — but the list of superior individual scorers is frighteningly small. If the Jazz can surround him with the right accompaniment of table-setters, spacers, and defenders, Utah can very quickly climb the NBA team ranks.
Primary backup small forward: Talen Horton-Tucker
Talen Horton-Tucker was essentially the Jazz’s starting point guard in the final month of the season. With their guard depth ravaged by injury, Utah leaned heavily on THT’s unique brand of slashing. Listed at 6-foot-4 and 234 pounds, Horton-Tucker certainly popped: he averaged 10.4 points and 3.8 assists in 20.2 minutes on 50.8 TS% for the season. He’s not much of a defender and the inefficiency is a major red flag, but Horton-Tucker can get hot and find ways to put the ball in the bucket. He’s going to get minutes.
The reason for his placement at small forward here is simple: Utah has several guards, all of whom will demand playing time. THT is short, but he’s also strong. He doesn’t have the lateral quickness to defend twitchy guards, making him more of a wing/forward for defensive purposes (his 7-foot-1 wingspan doesn’t hurt).