The Salt Lake Tribune recently released its list of most influential people in Utah Sports for 2016. To the surprise of some, Utah Jazz Forward Gordon Hayward topped the list.
Hayward has continued to improve his game in droves each year, but has failed to lead the team to the playoffs the last two seasons, and has never won a single NBA playoff game in the six seasons he has played for the Jazz.
The driving force behind the vote is not his NBA accolades or shelf of awards, but the fact that Hayward is the staple player of the Jazz franchise, and the city of Utah would like to keep it that way. The Jazz have been slowly improving and looking to contend in the Western Conference. For that to continue to happen, Hayward must be there.
Hayward has a contract option next summer, and the team will have to be satisfactory enough to keep his mind from wandering about playing for a new team.
If Hayward were to leave, it would significantly hurt the Jazz. It's difficult to lure all-star caliber players to Utah, and they would need to draft and develop another Utah star.
So begins the yearlong campaign for the city to champion their star, and attempts to woo him with enough love to remain in a Jazz uniform beyond next year.
Here are the other nine most influential sports figures in Utah from the list.
2. Kyle Whittingham – Utah football coach
3. Dennis Lindsey – Utah Jazz general manager
4. Quin Snyder – Utah Jazz coach
5. Larry Krystkowiak – Utah basketball coach
6. Gail Miller – Utah Jazz owner
7. Dell Loy Hansen – Real Salt Lake owner
8. Salani Sitake – BYU football coach
9. Jeff Robbins – Utah Sports Commission CEO
10. Tom Holme – BYU athletic director
[button width=”full” button size=”bigger” color=”custom” align=”center” textcolor=”#ffffff” texthcolor=”#ffffff” bgcolor=”#8b0000″ link=”https://clutchpoints.com/dwyane-wade-clarifies-bulls-jimmy-butlers-team/”]NEXT: Dwyane Wade clarifies the Bulls are Jimmy Butler’s team[/button]
Follow Us
Subscribe