THE FLATS –Derrick Favors signs a free agent contract with Utah, where he spent nine seasons … The NBA Draft has passed and free agency has begun with no movement for former Yellow Jackets Thaddeus Young and Josh Okogie with the Bulls and Timberwolves, respectively.
This week’s #ProJackets Report compiles more of the latest news, stories and social media posts on former Jackets and their activities of the past week.
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FAN FAVORITE FAVORS RETURNS TO UTAH
From The Athletic: Favors valued his time with the New Orleans Pelicans. He was traded there by the Jazz in the summer of 2019, when Utah went on a free-agency spree that included signing Bojan Bogdanovic and trading for point guard Mike Conley. He fit in well in New Orleans, as a starter on the floor and as a mainstay veteran in a youthful locker room. At the same time, Favors missed the Jazz. He missed the relationships he built over almost a decade. He missed being coached by Snyder, who had gained his respect and trust.
From UtahJazz.com: The 29-year-old rejoins the Jazz after spending nine seasons with Utah from 2010-19. During those years, he averaged 12.1 points on 52.6 percent from the field, 7.4 boards and 1.2 assists in 26.3 minutes per contest. The Atlanta native ranks fourth in all-time Jazz rebounds (4,250), offensive rebounds (1,448) and field goal percentage (.526), as well as fifth in defensive rebounds (2,802), seventh in blocks (772) and field goals (2,821) and 10th in games played (576).
From the Salt Lake Tribune: If it seemed like Derrick Favors’ decision to rejoin the Utah Jazz was a pretty instantaneous one after free agency opened up this past Friday, well, that’s just not accurate.
He and his agent talked it over for at least five minutes — maybe even 10.
Still, while a few other teams reached out to him both before and after Dennis Lindsey, Justin Zanik and Quin Snyder rang him up for a group confab, and while he did seriously consider their offers, there ultimately wasn’t too much thinking to be done about it on his end.
Happy thanksgiving!!! It’s a lot to be thankful about
— Derrick Favors (@dfavors14) November 26, 2020
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WHAT DO WOLVES DRAFTING OF EDWARDS AND SIGNING OF BEASLEY MEAN FOR OKOGIE?
The Minnesota Timberwolves drafted former Georgia star Anthony Edwards No. 1 overall and signed free agent guard Malik Beasley, which adds to the Wolves perimeter depth with the team’s last two first-round picks, Josh Okogie and Jarrett Culver, still on the roster.
From Dunking with Wolves: None of those players stand above 6-foot-5, and it’s not realistic to play Edwards at the 4 right out of the gate in the NBA. Could this be an option for a closing lineup, or at least a five-man group that could run with the best small-ball lineups in the league? Absolutely, and that’s undoubtedly what Gersson Rosas and Ryan Saunders are thinking.
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OKOGIE SHOULD BE A BUILDING BLOCK FOR WOLVES
Jack Borman of Canis Hoopus makes the case that Josh Okogie should be a building block, not on the trading block, for the Minnesota Timberwolves, writing “ In his first two seasons in the NBA, he has struggled to find his footing on the offensive end of the floor, particularly from behind the arc. Through 136 games, the Lagos, Nigeria native has shot a meager 27.4 percent from downtown; last season, Okogie shot just 27.6 percent in unguarded catch-and-shoot situations, which entrenched him in the 13th percentile, among some of the league’s worst shooters. However, there is reason to believe that Okogie’s shooting will improve in his third season. In August, Okogie spent a week working with one of the NBA’s most sought-after private trainers, Chris Matthews, a.k.a “Lethal Shooter.”
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