HAYWARD, PLUCKY JAZZ LOOK AHEAD TO RESTED WARRIORS
Of all the NBA’s superstar sagas, the annual subplots in which a team is hoping to hold onto a player in free agency by proving itself in the playoffs, Gordon Hayward’s was as overlooked as they come.
All season, the talk in NBA circles was about Paul George and his uncertain future with the Indiana Pacers, or the Los Angeles Clippers team that has Blake Griffin, Chris Paul and J.J. Redick headed toward free agency this summer, or the Atlanta Hawks with Paul Millsap or the Toronto Raptors with Kyle Lowry.
Playing in Salt Lake City, as Hayward, 27, has since coming out of Butler in 2010, means you sometimes get lost in the shuffle.
Unless, of course, you seize the national spotlight the way Hayward and the Jazz did Sunday by beating the Clippers 104-91 in Game 7 at Staples Center. Hayward scored 26 points and had eight rebounds in the win. Suddenly, with the Golden State Warriors looming in the second round and Hayward getting a taste of postseason success that can only help Utah’s cause when July 1 rolls around, Hayward’s underappreciated talents are front and center for all to see.
“Yeah, it’s a huge win for us, especially because going from 20 to 30 to 40 to 50 wins, or whatever we did, and for me being there the whole time, it was cool,” Hayward told USA TODAY Sports. “The fans being loyal through the ups and the downs (was big), too.”
As Hayward sat at his locker after Game 7, his shirt off and a dog tag swinging from his neck, he reflected on the Jazz’s impressive rebuilding job that has brought them to this point. It was only three seasons ago that, after plucking general manager Dennis Lindsey from the San Antonio Spurs in the summer of 2012, they won 25 games and seemed on the verge of losing Hayward.
He signed an offer sheet with Michael Jordan’s Charlotte Hornets, only to see the Jazz match it and make it clear he was their foundation. Then came Rudy Gobert, the prized big man who came their way as the 27th pick from the Denver Nuggets via trade on draft night in 2013. Plus Derrick Favors, George Hill, veteran additions like Joe Johnson, Boris Diaw, Joe Ingles and the rest. Before long, Hayward had a whole lot more to be happy about with his supporting cast. Now, the NBA’s Goliath looms. As playoff rewards go, it doesn’t get much worse than this for for the Jazz, who fell to the Warriors twice — Dec. 8 at Utah 106-99, and Dec. 20 in Oakland 104-74, before winning 105-99 in Oakland on April 10. Not only do the Jazz have to face a Warriors team that won a league-best 67 games in the regular season despite missing Kevin Durant for 20 games because of a left knee injury, they’ll also be seeing the rested-and-recovered version.
Golden State will be playing Game 1 on Tuesday after eight days of rest, having last played April 24 against the Portland Trail Blazers in the first round. In that time, the calf problem that kept Durant sidelined for two first-round games has healed.
“Oh, man, I don’t think you can give just a quick scouting report against those guys,” said Hayward, who paused briefly as thirdyear Jazz coach Quin Snyder came to his locker for a postgame hug. “No, it’s something where you try to contain those three (Durant, Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson) and make the other guys beat you, but I know we’ll look at it (Monday). I really haven’t even thought about it. I put it out of my mind.”