1. What will the Win/Loss totals look like?
Many things I've read about the Jazz in the national media talk about the Jazz tanking and how the team will struggle. I think the Jazz have enough talent and athleticism to win a few more games than some people think. Through training and camp and 1 preseason game, I'm going with 34-48.
2. Will we be better or worse than the Lakers?
I think the Jazz will end up with a worse record than the Lakers. Kobe will be back at some point, Pau Gasol is still very good, and Steve Nash is likely to miss less games than last season. I think the Lakers will at least manage to finish near the .500 mark.
3. Will we luck out and get one of the top three picks in the stacked 2014 draft?
The Jazz will have better odds of landing a top three pick than in most years, but I don't see them bucking the odds and having one of their combinations drawn during the 2014 draft lottery.
4. How closely will we be paying attention to Golden State’s record, hoping for another good pick?
I can't speak for all Jazz fans, but I'll be paying more attention early in the season. Unfortunately, I think the Warriors will do pretty well this year, so this story line will get less interesting as the season goes on.
5. Will Enes Kanter please wear a Spongebob t-shirt again?
I don't know, but I tried to help the cause:
@Enes_Kanter, @hoopslaureate would very much enjoy it if you wear a Spongebob shirt again at some point. Just sayin'.
— Buckle Up Jazz (@buckleupjazz) October 11, 2013
6. Or maybe Finding Nemo?
I'd say we're more likely to see him in a Spongebob shirt again.
7. Or maybe one of the minions from Despicable Me?
See answer to question 6.
8. Who will become the more vocal leader: Gordon Hayward or Derrick Favors?
Prior to seeing that clip of Favors saying he isn't really as quiet as people think, I'd have said Hayward easily. Now I think they both be pretty vocal, which is what the team needs.
9. Will Alec Burks start or be the top scorer off the bench?
He'll be the top scorer off the bench. Coach Corbin seems super impressed by Richard Jefferson, so I think he (Jefferson) will start.
10. How many times after each game will Ty Corbin say the players were “tremendous” at something?
His tppg ("tremendous" per post game)average will be around 2.4.
11. How many corner threes will the Jazz shoot?
I'll go with 345, which is a slight increase from last season.
http://stats.nba.com/teamShotchart.html?TeamID=1610612762&Season=2012-13&SeasonType=Regular%20Season&display-mode=performance&zone-mode=zone
12. How many 20/20 games will Kanter have?
There were only 18 20/20 games in the entire league last year, so don't think of it as a knock on Kanter when I say he'll get 1 this year.
13. How many ankles will Trey Burke break with his crossover?
8 - that's both ankles on 4 different opponents.
14. Will Andris Biedrins score more points this year than last year?
According to projections on basketball-reference.com, he'll only need to play about 175 to score 25 points on the season. Unless he is constantly subjected to hack-a-Biedrins, he'll get his 25 points.
15. Will Favors develop a go-to move?
Since Derrick himself doesn't seem overly concerned with not having one, I don't think he'll develop one this year.
16. How many corner threes will the Jazz give up?
295. Book it! (Or not, this is an unscientific guess).
17. How many variations of a beard will Gordon Hayward display this season?
Does each day without shaving count as a variation? If so, then we should see the one day beard, two day beard, and maybe even the three day beard.
18. How many threes will Ian Clark attempt per game?
1.7
19. How many alleyoops will Jeremy Evans finish this year?
He only had 4 last year, making all of his alley oop dunk attempts and missing his only layup attempt. He should get more playing time, but it remains to be seen if Jeremy can develop the same kind of chemistry he had with Earl Watson with Trey Burke JL III. I'll go with 7.
20. What will Rudy Gobert’s career high for blocks in a game be after this season?
5. He'll have at least one game where he just blocks shots in bunches.
21. Will Richard Jefferson be able to resurrect his career now that he’s wearing #24 again?
Of course, because it's all about the uniform number.
22. Will we mourn the loss of our last #24 the next time we play in Miami?
No, I think we'll mourn that loss more when the Jazz play the Hawks.
23. Who on earth are some of these folks on the training camp roster?
This is always a tough question. Let's just hope some of them can provide some preseason entertainment, a la Darnell Jackson.
24. Will Marvin Williams be able to find an effective role within the offense this year?
I want the answer to be yes, but I'm skeptical.
25. Will Trey Burke take to heart Stockton’s advice about getting teammates involved early, and that being a good passer will make one a better shooter?
To a point, yes. Burke will still look for his own shot more than Stockton generally did, but he'll find a good balance between that and involving his teammates as the year goes on.
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