Is a Utah Jazz/Derrick Favors reunion an off-season possibility?
Even if the season resumes, the Utah Jazz will face uncertainty during the off-season. Could they look to bring back former fan favorite Derrick Favors?
Despite going 41-23 before the NBA suspended the 2019-20 season, it hasn’t exactly been a fun season for Utah Jazz fans.
For starters, expectations were set extremely high before the season. This was a team that many thought could legitimately compete for a championship this season. Who knows if they will or would have gotten there, but the odds were low before the whole coronavirus saga and are certainly lower afterward.
Trade speculation has been circling for weeks regarding Rudy Gobert. Like it or not (I certainly don’t), there’s a very real possibility that Gobert is playing elsewhere in the future. This puts an eyeglass on the center position in Utah moving forward.
Does Gobert remain and keep that position? Do they get a center back in a trade? Do they sign a free agent if not? It’s all up in the air right now.
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One center who will be a free agent this summer is Derrick Favors — a former Utah Jazz player who is absolutely beloved by the entire fanbase. Fans have hoped for a reunion all season long, but is it something that could realistically happen?
Yes, I believe it is.
First off, I don’t believe that Favors or the Jazz really wanted to split up. Once Utah was able to snag Bojan Bogdanovic, it was bound to happen, but I don’t think they were ready to lose such an important piece to the culture they had built.
Favors himself had been on record saying that he wanted to remain in Utah prior to his trade to New Orleans. Being in trade rumors year after year, Favors knows that this is a business and I don’t believe that he left with any hard feelings.
I also believe Favors knows how much Utah Jazz fans love and support him. Any time he posts on social media, the comment section is completely filled with comments like “we miss you in Utah!” or “come back to the Jazz!”.
He’s someone that the Jazz can look at with their midlevel, but they will certainly have competition for his services. We don’t yet know if Utah can offer him the best role, but perhaps his past ties with the organization give them an advantage over everyone else.
He was drafted by the New Jersey Nets, but was traded to Utah during his rookie season in the Deron Williams deal. We got to see Favors grow both as a player and as a man during his nine seasons in Utah.
With Rudy Gobert no longer in the way, Favors was able to start at center for the Pelicans this year. This is probably his best position on the court. He had a very underrated season for New Orleans, anchoring their defense while averaging 9.2 points and 9.9 rebounds on 62 percent shooting.
He’s a low-maintenance player on the offensive end, finishing around the rim with ease and power. Defensively, he’s not as good of a rim protector as Gobert, but he’s just a tier below him and gets the job done with ease.
To be honest, I really don’t have to explain his game to Utah Jazz fans. They already know good and well what this guy can do. I’d love to see him come back and stay in Utah for the remainder of his career.
With guys like Favors and Ricky Rubio in town, chemistry issues were never feared to be an issue. This season has been the complete opposite. One thing that would bring a smile to fans, though, is Derrick Favors back in a Utah Jazz uniform next season.
