49. Can Jazz Have Three Repeat All-Stars?

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – The Utah Jazz open their season on October 20, just 49 days from today. With the clock ticking, we look at 50 things for Jazz fans to be excited about leading up to the 2021-22 NBA season. Today, in our second installment we look at the Jazz chances of once again having three All-Stars.

Will Jazz Once Again Have Three All-Stars?

Last season the Jazz had three All-Stars for only the second time in team history as Rudy Gobert, Donovan Mitchell, and Mike Conley were chosen to represent the west.

Both Gobert and Mitchell were making their second consecutive All-Star appearances, chosen as reserves by the league’s coaches after starters were selected by a combination vote from the media, players, and fans.

Conley was hand-selected to his first All-Star game to replace injured Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker, who was picked as an injury replacement for Los Angeles Lakers forward Anthony Davis.

There it is!

14 years, and worth the wait.

Mike Conley is an All-Star!#takeNote pic.twitter.com/to574y4Fqo

— KSL Sports (@kslsports) March 8, 2021

In his 14th season, Conley became the longest-tenured NBA player to make his All-Star debut.

Mitchell is a near-lock to be named to his third All-Star team barring injury. The fifth-year guard is perennially one of the NBA’s top-15 leading scorers and is only now starting to scratch the surface of his enormous potential.

Likewise, Gobert should be a relatively safe bet to make the All-Star game as each roster has three starting frontcourt players, three reserve frontcourt players, and two wildcards.

Even with a healthier Davis, Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard is expected to miss a significant chunk of the season with an ACL injury which should clear plenty of room for Gobert to pad his Hall of Fame resume.

The question then becomes whether Conley or perhaps another Jazz player could join the other two All-Stars.

Mike Conley changed his twitter handle, is he changing his jersey number from 10 back to 11 which he wore in Memphis. #TakeNote https://t.co/ICX7SiyZHK

— Ben Anderson (@BensHoops) September 1, 2021

Conley’s bid will be significantly tougher assuming Booker remains healthy next season, plus the addition of Russell Westbrook to the Lakers.

Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic and Golden State Warriors guard Steph Curry are locks to make the game. Both the Jazz’s Mitchell and Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard should be considered near-locks as well, with Westbrook getting a huge boost now playing in purple and gold.

That would already fill all four of the available guard spots on the All-Star team, plus one of the two wild-card spots among the reserves.

Conley could fill that final space if he has similar to success to last season, though he’ll be competing with both Booker and Suns teammate Chris Paul who were picked ahead of him last season to represent the West.

While Conley faces an uphill climb, it’s not out of the question that another Jazzman could make his All-Star debut.

We are only 50 days out from the @utahjazz opening the season against the OKC Thunder.

So, we begin our countdown of 50 things for Jazz fans to look forward to leading up to opening night!

At 50: Defending the best record in the NBA. #TakeNotehttps://t.co/m1Gj0hhvzk

— KSL Sports (@kslsports) August 31, 2021

After dealing with an injured wrist for most of last season, Bojan Bogdanovic exploded over the final month of the year averaging 23.4 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 2.0 assists while shooting a terrific 48 percent from the floor and 42 percent from the three-point line.

While it’s worth noting that Bogdanovic only saw the spike in his production after both Conley and Mitchell were sidelined by injury, it would be difficult to leave a 20 point per game scorer on a Western Conference front runner out of the All-Star game if the forward can carry his brilliant play to close the season over into next year.

Will the Jazz have three All-Stars this season? It’s going to be a tight squeeze, but one of the 50 storylines to keep on an eye leading up to opening night.