Are You A JimmerJazz Fan, Too?!

The NBA Finals are over and the NBA Draft is finally here!  The proceedings on Thursday night will change the direction of so many NBA teams, NBA General Managers, and - of course - the current and future NBA players themselves.  We had a lot of fun talking about the NFL Draft here and how humorous, yet exciting, the NFL Draft would be if fans could text in their favorite team's selection, with the text results determining which players the teams would select.  But given that I actually care about the NBA Draft, I would not even come close to suggesting such a proposal.  Why?  Because a lot of Jazz fans, including me, have a Jimmer problem.


Jimmer and the Jazz have been inextricably
linked for many months. But will the dream
pairing actually come true for JimmerJazz fans?

 Usually the heavy debates and analysis are reserved for the #1 pick, and this year's NBA Draft still carries a lot of drama at the top - especially because the team that holds the #1 pick, the Cleveland Cavaliers, also holds the #4 pick, and the Cavs are trying to use the 2011 NBA Draft as the launchpad for a successful post-LeBron era.  Many sources are citing that the Cavaliers have decided to select Duke point guard Kyrie Irving at #1, and of course, others are highlighting the fact that the Cavaliers conducted a last-minute pre-draft workout with Arizona forward Derrick Williams and Kentucky point guard Brandon Knight on Monday, leading many to believe that the Cavs are not quite sold on Irving.  In a perfect post-Lebron world, Cleveland would love to land both Irving and Williams, but the teams with the #2 and #3 picks - the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Utah Jazz - are highly unlikely to let that happen.  Up until the tip of the Draft on Thursday night, each of the top three teams will be continually analyzing all the "what-if" scenarios while not ruling out any last minute trade offers that may come their way.

But beyond the top 2, the pool of potential players opens up quite a bit as multiple international and college stars will vie for the coveted lottery positions.  Which brings us to the JimmerJazz problem.  I can't remember there ever being so much debate about a player that is slated to be drafted anywhere between picks #7 and #20 of the first round.  Everyone seems like they need to have an opinion about where Jimmer will go, where he should go, which NBA star he will most likely play like, which NBA "bust" he most resembles, or that Jimmermania simply won't carry over into the NBA.  For JimmerJazz fans everywhere, however, Thursday night will either be a fantastic night of celebrating Jimmer's trail to NBA success as well as the Jazz's quick reassertion as a Western Conference power, or it will be a collective combination of potential tragedy and heartbreak for many years to come...or maybe somewhere in between.  To help you understand what I'm talking about, here are some of the worst-case / best-case scenarios for all of us JimmerJazz fans - ordered worst to first.


Jan Vesely (middle, dunking) has shown promise in his
young European career, but he also could be the centerpiece
of a Draft gone wrong for the Utah Jazz.

Bad Jimmer / Bad Jazz
In order to be successful in the NBA, Jimmer Fredette needs to go to a team that recongnizes his strengths (work ethic, long-range shooting, play-making ability, scoring, winning, etc.) while not believing in the "weaknesses" that the national media and other ignorant NBA "experts" have promoted during the pre-draft process (athleticism, defensive ability, quickness, etc.).  Worst case scenario for Jimmer is that each of the teams he worked out for leading up to the draft as we discussed here will pass him up by paying more attention to what the media is saying than what they actually witnessed throughout his college career and in his individual workouts.  Jimmer's strategy of only working out for the teams he thought he would fit best with backfires as they all overthink the pick and focus on the flaws in his game, and Jimmer slides all the way to #20 to the Minnesota Timberwolves and the JimmerTimberwolf fans (if there are any out there), who are elated to have both Jimmer and the #2 pick (likely either Irving or Williams).  But in this scenario, Jimmer would be under-utilized and exposed as he unsuccessfully plays for a perennial 15-game winner and gets lost among the numerous 6-foot guards currently on Minnesota's roster (including the newcomer, Ricky Rubio).  The Jazz, meanwhile, draft Czech star Jan Vesely with their #3 pick, who decides to stay in Europe and never makes it to the US to play in the NBA.  Then with their #12 pick the Jazz again pass on Jimmer, citing the 4 missed shots he had during his 18-22 performance in a three-point shooting drill during his pre-draft workout as the deciding factor.  However, fearing a severe public backlash for not drafting Jimmer, the Jazz decide to draft the BYU all-time steals leader, Jackson Emery.


What could be the fallout if the Jazz pass on Jimmer Fredette?
Time will only tell what the JimmerJazz fans may be capable of.

 The Jazz draft party at EnergySolutions Arena turns into an absolute riot as the fans (including Emery, who is in attendance) tear apart the building piece by piece, raid the Jazz management's offices, and destroy the Stockton and Malone statues outside the arena.  The public outcry forces the Miller family to sell the team to an investor group of Utah KobeLaker fans who immediately change the Jazz color scheme to purple and gold, rename the team the Anaheim Mousketeerzz (note the double zz), and move the team to Southern California because they don't want to spend the money to re-build EnergySolutions after the Draft Day debacle (It should also be noted that this is my wife's current "Good / Good" scenario because it would result in me not paying attention whatsoever to Jimmer or the NBA on a going forward basis).

Good Jimmer / Bad Jazz
Ok, I've shown my hand by listing this scenario in the next-to-the-worst position, but I have only been a Jimmer fan for 4 years and I've been a Jazz fan for 30 years.  The Jazz will win every time...for now.  Jimmer's pre-draft workout strategy plays out perfectly as the owners of the Sacramento Kings, the Maloof brothers, become the latest fans of Jimmermania as they act upon their man-crush of The Jimmer and select Fredette with the #7 pick in the draft.  Jimmer flourishes alongside Tyreke Evans who, with Jimmer at the point guard position, can move to his more natural shooting guard role.  Jimmer becomes a public relations home run as his popularity and first-year success carries the Kings to the playoffs and encourages the people of Sacramento to pony up the tax money for a new basketball arena and the Kings decide to stay in Sacramento for good.  Jimmer plays in Sacramento's up-tempo, exciting offense for his entire 16-year NBA career as he wins the Rookie of the Year award, garners 10 all-star game appearances, and carries the Kings to the 2015 NBA Finals where they beat the Miami Heat, who lose in the NBA Finals for the fifth consecutive year.  Meanwhile, the Jazz lose to Jimmer's Kings in the 3 of the 4 head-to-head playoff series, with the lone series win coming when Jimmer overdid it at Cafe Rio during one of his pre-game meals and shot a LeBron-like 1-8 in the 4th quarter of Game 7 - even though there were more Jazz fans cheering for Jimmer and the Kings than there were cheering for the Jazz.  The Jazz continue to regret using their 2011 #3 pick on Czech star Jan Vesely, who pulls a Ricky Rubio and decides to come to the NBA in 2013, where he plays for one season and averages 4.4 points per game under new Utah Jazz head coach, Greg Ostertag.

Bad Jimmer / Good Jazz
Now this is where it starts to get interesting for us JimmerJazz fans.  Despite what draft experts may say about Jimmer's weaknesses, he has a ton of Jimmermania fans in NBA team draft war rooms across the country, which has increased the likelihood that he will jump up the board and get drafted sooner rather than later in the first round.  Jimmer's rise in popularity does not sit well with teams that really like him but were hoping that he would still be available later in the first round (i.e., New York Knicks - 17th pick), so one of the Knicks decide to make a deal.  Now Jimmer has always said that he would love to play in Madison Square Garden with his home-state team, but if the Knicks really do something crazy due to their love for The Jimmer, the honeymoon will be short-lived in the Empire State.  The Knicks offer to swap picks with the Pistons at #8 while also offering to send Chauncey Billups and his expiring contract to Detroit where he helped the Pistons win the NBA Championship in 2004. It's a good deal for Detroit because they still keep New York's first-round pick (#17) while picking up a seasoned veteran to help the new Piston coach (whoever it will be) transition into the job in year one.  The Pistons, however, play hard ball and demand the Knicks' first-round pick in 2012 as well, and the Knicks, reflecting on the highlights of Jimmer's road game against the Utes this year, agree to the deal.  Knicks fans are overly excited for the sharp-shooting Jimmer to hit Broadway, but because the Knicks gave up Billups and next year's first-round pick, expectations are set too high (even for New York standards) for Jimmer to succeed.  Chris Paul signs with the Knicks next summer and Jimmer is buried on the bench for the last 2 years of his rookie contract.  Jimmer has 3 decent years in New York, but he comes nowhere near the expectations that were set by New York's terrible draft-day negotiations.  Jimmer leaves New York in 3 years after every other NBA team fails to sign him and he has a successful 10-year career in Europe.  (If Jimmer naturally falls to #17 and the Knicks pick him up there, it still might be able to work, but it's still not an ideal fit for him.)  The Jazz, on the other hand, are targeting Jimmer with their #12 pick (before New York conducts all of its draft day shenanigans), so they take Turkish big man Enes Kanter with the #3 pick.  Kanter thrives in a great, young big man rotation that includes Al Jefferson, Paul Millsap, Derrick Favors, and fellow Turk, Mehmet Okur, and the Jazz are finally able to challenge the front court of the Lakers for years to come.  Okur helps Kanter's transition to the NBA by showing him all the great Turk hangouts in Salt Lake (there's gotta be 2 or 3, right?) and Kanter is a consistent 20 /10 guy.  Although the Jazz don't have a shot at Jimmer at #12, they are actually relieved that they won't have to face the pressure of whether Jimmer would fail or succeed in their system, and due to the draft chaos caused by the Knicks, the teams drafting #9-11 forget that Connecticut guard Kemba Walker is still on the board, and Kemba falls into the Jazz's lap at #12, setting off chants of "Kemba, Kemba, Kemba" from Stoors, Connecticut all the way to EnergySolutions Arena.  Jazz coach Tyrone Corbin is so excited to have Walker and relieved to have escaped the scrutiny of JimmerJazz fans everywhere, he runs around EnergySolutions Arena waving his shirt over his head yelling, "Jimmer Who?!, Jimmer Who?!"

Brandon Knight (12) could be the best thing that ever happened
to the Jazz...and to Jimmer.

Good Jimmer / Good Jazz
I'll just burst your bubble now - maybe in a surreal, fantasy, basketball land the Jazz will draft Jimmer at either pick #3 or #12 and he will become the face of the franchise and a perennial all-star for the Jazz for his entire career...but I don't see it happening.  At least not yet.  The Jazz did a pretty good job of unloading all-NBA point guard Deron Williams while still being able to pick up Devin Harris from the Nets (and Favors and draft picks), but in an NBA that significantly favors the point guard, the days of backup point guards like Ronnie Price, Earl Watson, Eric Maynor, Dee Brown and Sundiata Gaines are over.  In the name of Howard Eisley, the Jazz need a couple of high-quality point guards.  How many times did the Jazz fall behind in the late first quarter / early second quarter when the second-team came in the game last year and D-Will went to the bench?  Way too many times.  The Jazz need an NBA-ready point guard to backup Harris (and eventually start) more than anything else right now, so picking up Brandon Knight with the #3 pick makes the most basketball sense.  Knight is even better than D-Will was when the Jazz drafted him in 2005.  Knight can shoot, run the break, make big shots, and already he comes with NBA size at the point guard position (6'3" and 180 pounds), which is why the Jazz can't use this high pick on Kemba.  Sorry Jimmer, I'm a Jazz fan first and you're just not what our team needs most right now.  Moreover, the Jazz shouldn't be shy about looking for trade options who may want to package Harris or Al Jefferson with either of their picks at #3 or #12 (but that's a whole other discussion). 

From my perspective, the best case for Jimmer is if the Jazz pass on drafting him...twice!  At #12 (or if they're able to trade down) there will still be plenty of good talent available.  Because the Jazz will have drafted a guard at #3, Jimmer should not be an option here and the Jazz will look to add an athletic big guy to complement the young core of Favors and Gordon Hayward in the frontcourt.  Players such as UCLA Forward Tyler Honeycutt, Purdue Center/Forward JaJuan Johnson, and Texas Forward Tristan Thompson would all be able to step in and provide solid, athletic building blocks for the future.  With a lockout potentially shortening the 2011-12 season and 2 more potential lottery picks next year, now is the time for the Jazz to rebuild and not be swayed by the Jimmer(fake)Jazz fans who want the Jazz to gamble on Jimmer succeeding right away in the NBA.  The Jazz don't need Jimmer to sell tickets.  If they win and play hard, the seats will be full - whether Jimmer is there or not.  But back to Jimmer...I think he has the perfect situation waiting for him just behind the Jazz at #13 with the Phoenix Suns. 

Jimmer looks good in a Suns uniform. If you're
a true JimmerJazz fan, you'll want to see it, too.

The Suns provide a great landing pad for Jimmer as he would step in and backup MVP Steve Nash at point guard while providing a sharp-shooting dimension to a Suns team that would expect Jimmer to contribute without being expected to start or carry the team at the point.  Jimmer quickly gets over the fact that the Jazz passed on him twice and succeeds in his role with Phoenix for the duration of his 3-year rookie contract.  My second-favorite team becomes the Phoenix Suns and every Suns-Jazz game automatically becomes must-watch TV for JimmerJazz fans everywhere.  After 3 years with the Suns, Jimmer masters the point guard position learning behind Nash, and all the Jimmer "haters" will have stopped talking about his defensive inadequacies and other "white-boy" stereotypes that are naively being thrown out in the media leading up to the draft.  Jimmer will show that he is a valuable, NBA-proven asset at either the point guard or shooting guard position and he will demand a significant, long-term contract, which he will eventually get...from the Utah Jazz.

I told you I was a JimmerJazz fan.