National Basketball Association

Utah Jazz: Takeaways From Gordon Hayward's Injury

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 11:33 p.m. ET

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Jan 18, 2016; Charlotte, NC, USA; Utah Jazz forward Gordon Hayward (20) drives the ball around Charlotte Hornets guard Jeremy Lin (7) in the second half at Time Warner Cable Arena. The Hornets defeated the Jazz in two overtimes 124-119. Mandatory Credit: Jeremy Brevard-USA TODAY Sports

Utah Jazz forward Gordon Hayward sustained a dislocated finger on his non-shooting hand and could miss between four to six weeks of the upcoming NBA season. Here are the main takeaways from his injury.

The Utah Jazz finished the 2015-16 campaign with a 40-42 record. But despite injuries to several players (more on that in a bit), the Jazz were in the playoff race right up until the final week of the season.

One of the reasons why Utah just missed the postseason was because of Gordon Hayward, who led the team in scoring with 19.7 points and 5.0 rebounds per contest. However, it appears that the Jazz are now faced with an early-season setback, as Hayward recently sustained an injury on his non-shooting hand.

As of right now, the timetable for his return is anywhere from four to six weeks. With their youthful core expected to take the next step, along with offseason additions (George Hill, Joe Johnson and Boris Diaw), sports outlets such as ESPN predicted that the Jazz would emerge as a playoff team.

However, that prediction may not come to fruition depending upon how long Hayward will be out of the lineup, and/or how well the team responds during his absence.

That being said, here are the main takeaways from Hayward’s recent injury.

Apr 10, 2016; Denver, CO, USA; Utah Jazz forward Gordon Hayward (20) celebrates with guard Rodney Hood (5) after a play in the third quarter against the Denver Nuggets at the Pepsi Center. The Jazz defeated the Nuggets 100-84. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports

Jazz Face Early Potential Hole To Start Season

It was alluded to earlier that Utah’s resolve would be tested early. That assertion is supported by the fact that seven of the team’s first 11 games will be against teams who were in the playoffs a year ago.

This includes five road games against the Portland Trail Blazers, Los Angeles Clippers, San Antonio Spurs, Charlotte Hornets and the Miami Heat — not exactly the kind of schedule you want to see when your star player is sidelined with an injury

Needless to say, the Jazz will have their work cut out for them. If they are able to win five or six of those games, though, they will be in pretty decent shape for Hayward’s projected return.

On the other side of the equation, if the Jazz fall into an early hole, it will be difficult for them to climb back into the playoff race in a Western Conference filled with a lot of talented teams.

Feb 6, 2015; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Utah Jazz forward Derrick Favors (15) and center Rudy Gobert (27) and forward Gordon Hayward (20) and guard Dante Exum (11) look on against the Phoenix Suns at US Airways Center. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

Jazz Have Been Here Before

Fortunately and unfortunately, the injury bug is nothing new for this Jazz ball club. In 2015-16, they were without the services of Derrick Favors, Rudy Gobert, Alec Burks and Dante Exum at various stretches of the season.

Their return to the lineup factored into the expectations of the Jazz vying for one of the top four playoff spots. But the news on that front isn’t entirely positive.

For starters, Favors has been battling knee soreness. Although sitting him out in recent preseason games against the Phoenix Suns and the Los Angeles Clippers is being viewed as more of a precautionary measure, there still has to be concern here considering that he is one of the players expected to assume a larger role during Hayward’s absence.

Meanwhile, Burks — who had arthroscopic surgery back in June — has not been cleared for contact and there is uncertainty pertaining to his return, as explained by head coach Quin Snyder.

“There’s no way for us to predict day-by-day when he will return,” Snyder said, via the Salt Lake Tribune. “He’s making progress and he’s doing everything he can to get back. But he’s not at the point where he can return, yet.”

In other words, although their offseason acquisitions made them one of the deepest teams in the NBA, it appears that depth will be tested early.

Who Steps In At Small Forward?

Although replacing Hayward’s production will not be an easy task, Snyder remains confident that the team is more than capable of staying afloat while he is out of the lineup.

From ABCNews.com:

“You don’t want to wallow over things you can’t control,” Snyder said. “More than anything I feel bad for Gordon. It’s not a pity part for the team. Guys have to step up. We’ve got good players and they’re capable of picking up the slack collectively and individually.

“But that doesn’t change the fact that Gordon’s been our best player.”

Replacing a player who has missed a total of just 13 games over the last three seasons will not be an easy task by any means, but the Jazz do have a viable alternative option on the roster.

That option is none other than Joe Johnson. Sure, Johnson was signed by the Jazz to play more a reduced role being that he is in the twilight of his career. Sure, Johnson has not provided Jazz fans with a lot of confidence in two preseason contests, as he has converted just two of his nine attempts.

Conversely, Johnson is a seven-time All-Star who has averaged 16.9 points and 36 minutes per outing during the course of his career. Along with that, he shoots a respectable 44 percent from the field and 37 percent from three-point range, which means he is an adequate floor spacer at the very least.

Jan 18, 2016; Charlotte, NC, USA; Utah Jazz head coach Quin Snyder talks with forward Gordon Hayward (20) on the bench in the first half against the Charlotte Hornets at Time Warner Cable Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jeremy Brevard-USA TODAY Sports

Other Scoring Options

For those of you who may not be ready to believe that Johnson can be a solution at this stage of his career, I hear you.

That being said, there are a couple of other players that may be capable of answering the bell. Rodney Hood — the team’s second-best perimeter scorer — averaged 14.5 points per contest last season, nearly doubling his scoring output from 2014-15.

Hood proved what he brings to the table in a nationally televised game last season against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

In that contest, Hood poured in 28 points on an efficient 9-for-16 from the field and 4-for-9 from beyond the arc as the team’s primary scoring option.

While Hood may be one of the more obvious candidates to fill Hayward’s shoes over the next several weeks, there is also another name that hasn’t garnered much attention: George Hill, the team’s starting point guard.

While Hill’s career scoring average of 11.3 points per contest may not jump off the stat sheet, it is worth noting that he has been in a position of leading a team when a star player goes down with an injury.

In 2014-15, Hill posted career highs in both points (16.1) and assists (5.1) as a member of the Indiana Pacers when Paul George missed most of that season due to a leg injury.

All in all, the Jazz may have a difficult time trying to replicate Hayward’s production on a nightly basis. The good news is, they have more options in place compared to last season, which will allow them to remain competitive during his absence — barring any additional injuries of course.