History of the Utah Jazz

80s - Setting up for Success

The Jazz franchise began in 1974 in New Orleans. The team didn’t win much but had an exciting star in Pete Maravich. They relocated to Utah in 1979 hoping to find some success. After drafting defensive legend Mark Eaton along with hall of farmers John Stockton and Karl Malone all within 4 years, they started a 20 year streak of making the playoffs.

90s - Finals losses

As Malone and Stockton got more experienced, they developed into one of the best duos in NBA history. Throughout the decade they were one of the best teams in the West and had many intense playoff battles with the Rockets, Supersonics, and Trail Blazers. In 1997 and 1998 they won the conference but fell short to Jordan’s Bulls in the finals both times.

00s - A New Era

In 2004, the Jazz would be without Stockton and Malone for the first time in 19 years. They pivoted to developing young players such as Andrei Kirilenko and Deron Williams along with trading for power forward Carlos Boozer. In 2007 the team made it to the Western Conference Finals but fell short to the Spurs.

10s - Temporary Stars

The 2010s were full of rotating stars who occasionally lead playoff teams to first or second-round exits. Many of these stars ended up leaving and not being as relevant in the NBA such as Deron Williams, Al Jefferson, and Gordon Hayward. Rudy Gobert looked like the second coming of Mark Eaton, but was never able to find much success with either Gordon Hayward or Donovan Mitchell.