NBA Saturday: Burke, Jazz Confident About Future

Burke, Jazz Confident About Future

It’s easy to forget that Trey Burke just turned 22 years old several months ago and is only in his second NBA season with the Utah Jazz. The ninth overall pick in the 2013 NBA Draft seems older because he has been relevant in the basketball world for quite some time and he carries himself like a mature veteran.

Burke’s name first started surfacing in NBA circles when he was dominating alongside Jared Sullinger at Northland High School in Columbus, OH. He turned heads by winning a state championship, U16 National AAU championship and Ohio’s 2011 Mr. Basketball award.

Then, the point guard burst onto the scene as a star freshman at Michigan, leading the team in total points, assists, steals and blocks. Despite his success, he returned to school for his sophomore season and became a household name after his incredible March Madness run that included a 30-foot, overtime-forcing shot against Kansas and ultimately a runner-up finish to Louisville in the 2013 national championship game. Shortly after, he was drafted by Utah, and now his NBA career is 144 games old.

Burke started all but two games he appeared in as a rookie, averaging 12.8 points, 5.7 assists, 3.0 rebounds and .6 steals and finishing third in Rookie of the Year voting behind only Michael Carter-Williams and Victor Oladipo.

This year, his role has changed a bit with the addition of fellow lottery point guard Dante Exum and the hiring of head coach Quin Snyder. He has started just 43 of 74 games and is playing slightly fewer minutes per game, although his averages are pretty similar: 12.9 points, 4.4 assists, 2.7 rebounds and .9 steals.

While the major statistical categories are about the same, it’s worth noting that Burke has limited his turnovers and fouls and, at times, seems more in control on the court. He’s the first person to admit that he’s still learning and trying to expand his game, but he’s optimistic about the progress he’s making since, again, he’s still so young.

“I’m much more comfortable,” Burke told Basketball Insiders. “I’m starting to understand the very small things that will help me get to where I want to be in my career. There are some things you don’t understand until you actually experience a year or two in the NBA. One of the main things was the schedule. Going from 30 games to 82 games is a big adjustment for really anyone who’s coming from college to the NBA. That’s something that I’ve definitely learned to cope with.”

Being around the best players in the world for two years has also taught Burke quite a few tips and tricks. While he wouldn’t name specific players, he said that he has studied and duplicated some of the moves used by veterans he respects around the league.

“I definitely look at guys I’m playing against and sometimes I do see certain things that I can learn from,” Burke said. “Guys who are older and have been in the league obviously have more experience, and they do certain things you can take and put into your game.”

When talking to Burke, it quickly becomes clear that adding things to his game is extremely important to him and that he aspires to be great. He doesn’t seem like the kind of player who would be content with simply being an average role player throughout his career. He’s competitive and has an incredible work ethic, to the point that he sounds giddy when talking about the upcoming offseason and the opportunities he’ll have to improve his game while essentially being locked away in a Columbus gym.

“I’m really looking forward to this offseason,” Burke said. “I’m working hard this summer to prepare for next season. This offseason, I would like to go to a stable spot, where I can just focus in and train. That will probably be back at home in Columbus, OH. The things that I’m working on this offseason are just really getting stronger, getting quicker, being more explosive, finishing at the rim and just continuing to work on my jump shot. I think those are the biggest things that I need to work on and I’m going to attack them this summer.

“I know that I have a high ceiling and have more potential to grow. Like I said, this summer and this offseason will be very big for me. I look forward to coming back even stronger and even better next season. Being a young player, I know that these offseasons are really important in how much I’ll grow.”

One of the main reasons why Burke wants to take the next step in his development as soon as possible is because he believes Utah has a chance to be a special team very soon. The team is currently 34-41, which exceeded most preseason projections. Said differently, they’re only seven and a half games out of the eighth seed in the insanely competitive Western Conference and they would be the eighth seed right now if they played in the Eastern Conference.

The Jazz have shown glimpses of how special they can be throughout this season. Since the All-Star break, they have won 15 of 21 games and have had one of the league’s most dominant defenses.

With that in mind, I start to ask Burke if he believes the Jazz could make the playoffs next season. Toward the end of the question, I mention that “the West is brutal” and that’s when he cuts me off.

“Yes, the West is brutal, but we definitely think we can [make the playoffs],” Burke said confidently and without hesitation. “We’ve beaten a lot of the top teams in the NBA. At the same time, we’ve lost a lot of games as well, but we know we can beat pretty much anyone with the team we have and the talent we have. Next year, we’ll have Alec Burks coming back and we’ll be [at full strength]. We think it will be a great year for us.”

As Burke mentioned, Utah has certainly had a lot of quality wins on the season, beating playoff teams like the Golden State Warriors, Cleveland Cavaliers, Houston Rockets, Memphis Grizzles (twice), San Antonio Spurs (twice), Portland Trail Blazers and Chicago Bulls among others.

And it certainly seems that the Jazz’s best basketball is ahead of them, as 11 of their players are age 25 or younger. The team’s oldest players are Trevor Booker, Jeremy Evans, Joe Ingles and Elijah Millsap, all of whom are 27 years old (which is almost considered ancient in the Jazz locker room).

The Jazz have young talent at every position and a core of Burke, Dante Exum, Gordon Hayward, Derrick Favors, Rudy Gobert, Alec Burks and Rodney Hood can cause a lot of problems for opposing teams, as they’ve shown since the All-Star break. If this group is playing this well right now, how scary will they be when the players all reach their prime right around the same time? Burke can’t wait to find out, and he certainly doesn’t lack confidence when discussing the team’s future.

“We think [we’re the NBA’s best up-and-coming team],” Burke said. “If we’re not the best, then we’re one of the best. We’ve won a lot of really good games, games that we were underdogs in, and that’s been big for our confidence. We do think we’re one of the best teams with a young roster in the NBA right now.”

That confidence is relatively new for Utah. Last season, they would enter most games viewing themselves as the underdog with a slim chance of winning. When your team has a .305 winning percentage and the West’s worst record, that mentality is understandable. It wasn’t until recently, when they started dominating defensively and beating talented teams, that they started entering games expecting to win or, at the very least, compete at a high level.

“I think the biggest thing is we’re starting to understand how good we can be,” Burke said. “We’re playing at a high level, we’re playing together and, more importantly, we’re playing high-level defense, which is allowing us to get great offense. We know we’re a young team with a lot of talent, and we’re looking forward to next year. I think this momentum that we are gaining at the end of this season will definitely lead into next year’s success.”

The Oklahoma City Thunder had a similar realization when their win total jumped from 23 to 50 from the 2008-09 season to the 2009-10 campaign. They were a young team that had been to the lottery in four consecutive years, so they weren’t the scariest team to face. That is, until those lottery selections started to blossom and dominate, turning Oklahoma City into a juggernaut that featured a confident Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, Serge Ibaka and (at the time) James Harden.

Burke gives a lot of credit to Coach Snyder for Utah’s turnaround and culture change. The fact that that Burke and Snyder have such a strong bond even though Burke was moved out of the starting lineup by Snyder, says a lot about Burke’s maturity and professionalism and about the respect and trust that Snyder has from his players.

“Our relationship is really good; since he came in, we’ve had a relationship on and off the court,” Burke said of his bond with Coach Snyder. “I think everyone likes him. He’s a guy who holds everyone accountable, even himself, to get things that we’re trying to accomplish done. We need someone who’s going to hold everyone accountable, so it’s great to have a guy like him.”

Burke also praises Gobert’s development, which has been huge for Utah. The 22-year-old played so well that Enes Kanter became expendable and was traded to the Thunder. Putting Gobert in the starting lineup has turned Utah into one of the league’s top defensive teams. Gobert will likely receive consideration for awards like Most Improved Player and Defensive Player of the Year, as he should.

“His progression has been great for us,” Burke said of Gobert. “With his ability to block shots around the rim, and his presence on the court, he has definitely helped us. We are going to need that from him all this year and next year.”

One question that has generated some discussion lately is, what should the Jazz do with the lottery pick that they’ll have in the 2015 NBA Draft? As previously stated, they already have so much young talent, so should they try to trade it for a veteran contributor? Or should they use the pick and add another piece to their young core?

“If I had to make the call, I would probably go best available,” Burke said regarding Utah’s draft pick. “You always want good talent to be a part of your team. [I’d try to take] a guy who loves to compete and at the same time is very talented. That’s probably what I would do.”

Whatever the Jazz decide to do, it’s clear that this team has the weapons to be very good and make serious noise in the near future. Lately, Utah’s players have been having a blast because everything is better for a team when it is winning. Suddenly, everyone around the organization is happy, fans are ecstatic and there’s hope throughout the city. But the players are also thrilled because they are seeing the early signs of their greatness and realizing that they have something special coming together.

“We’re having a lot more fun – guys are smiling and laughing and we’re enjoying this last part of the season,” Burke said with a grin. “We know what the future holds and how good we can be.”

Trey Burke is working with Unilever, promoting their products and helping athletes and others “Get Game Ready” by following a proper grooming program.

“Working with Unilever, our goal is to get guys game ready with their grooming routine, using our products such as the Degree Men Dry Spray and the Dove Men+Care Body Wash,” he said. “They have Degree, Dove and Axe body products and I use them before my games and it helps me get game ready. You always want to feel clean, whether it is off the court or on the court. I think it is something big in the NBA; it’s something big in all professional sports.”