NBA news: 2 biggest knocks on surging Jazz, according to rival execs

The Utah Jazz have established themselves as the best team in the NBA, as they are sitting on top of the Western Conference with a 26-6 record.

The Utah Jazz have established themselves as the best team in the NBA, as they are sitting on top of the Western Conference with a 26-6 record. With their 114-89 win against the Los Angeles Lakers, they now have won their last 9 out of 10 games.

However, some rival NBA executives are not too convinced of the Jazz's staying power, as they don't think Utah has enough top-tier talents to get them over the hump in the playoffs, per Tim MacMahon of ESPN.

“One of the primary reasons skepticism about the Jazz persists among rival scouts and executives is because they lack proven star power that the Lakers, LA Clippers and Eastern Conference favorite Brooklyn Nets feature.”

Unlike, for example, the Los Angeles Lakers and the LA Clippers, who feature the pair of LeBron James and Anthony Davis and the duo of Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, the Jazz apparently don't have the tandem that is on the same level as those pairings, at least from the aforementioned executives' perspectives.

Another concern for the Jazz, as brought up by a Western Conference team's scout, is their depth on defense despite the presence of a mammoth defensive anchor in Rudy Gobert.

“Those who doubt the Jazz's ability to beat L.A. — either the Clippers or Lakers — typically cite defensive concerns first. Royce O'Neale usually guards the opponent's best scorer, from shooting guards to power forwards.

“Who guards the other guy, is the problem,” a West scout said, referring to two-superstar opponents that could stand in the Jazz's way in the playoffs.”

They have Gobert protecting the paint, but their lack of defensive versatility leaves many aspects of their defense vulnerable. Offensively, Donovan Mitchell has taken the responsibility of the main scorer on the team, averaging 24.1 points a game. The question is how will Mitchell handle the burden of offensive production when playing against teams who have multiple offensive threats that can score north of 20 on a nightly basis.

Mitchell said earlier this season that all he cares about is their record this coming July. No matter how much success the Jazz find in the regular season, what they do in the playoffs is what will truly define them.