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Utah Jazz Point Guard Trey Burke Has Work To Do

By Ryan Aston

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Mar 18, 2015; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Washington Wizards guard John Wall (2) dribbles while Utah Jazz guard Trey Burke (3) focuses on the ball during the third quarter at EnergySolutions Arena. Washington Wizards won the game 88-84. Mandatory Credit: Chris Nicoll-USA TODAY Sports

Last night, the Utah Jazz fell to the Minnesota Timberwolves at EnergySolutions Arena. Stop for a moment; let that sink in.

The Wolves, who had lost to the Charlotte Hornets the night before, only dressed seven players for the game. Again—let that sink.

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Now that you’ve had time to fully grasp what has transpired and come to terms with it, the next logical step in the process is to look for answers.

While the reasons for this atrocity are many, the absence of Gordon Hayward being chief among them, the lack of production from the point guard spot stands front and center.

With Hayward out, many were looking to second year point-man Trey Burke to pick up the scoring slack against the team that drafted him. Unfortunately, Burke’s play left something to be desired.

For Burke, a former college player of the year at Michigan, this has become an all-too-common occurrence.

Despite coming into the league with a reputation as a scorer and playmaker, Burke has struggled with the size and skill of NBA players. Moreover, his shot has failed him. For his career, he is a sub-40-percent shooter.

Optimism grew when Burke moved to the bench and was able to register some big performances, but, invariably, the law of averages always smacks the diminutive Burke back down to size.

Since the first of February, he has posted a true shooting percentage of 45-percent. To call this subpar would be too kind.

When he’s on, some would have you believe he is a super-sub of Jamal Crawford-like effectiveness. Alas, he always seems to encircle the gems with a bevy of duds.

In Utah’s previous contest with the Golden State Warriors, Burke notched 20 points and hit on five from three-point range. Last night, when the team needed him to assume Hayward’s scoring role, he was four-for-22 from the field.

Despite his struggles, I still believe in Trey Burke. He is a strong-willed individual with confidence and a killer instinct.

Should he wish to become something other than a poor man’s Monta Ellis, he has a mental make-up that seems equal to the task, but there is work to do.

With Dante Exum and Raul Neto waiting in the wings and an intriguing list of free agent point guards available this offseason, the time to put that work in is now.

In the past, even when he was in the midst of major struggles, Burke has always shown an innate ability to take (and often make) big shots in crunch time.

Entering year three of his NBA career, crunch time could be now for Burke’s Jazz career. Struggles aside, something tells me that the former Wolverine is about to take another big shot.

One thing is for certain—this Jazz train is leaving the station and headed toward something good. If Burke doesn’t want to be left standing on the platform, that big shot needs to fall.

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