After losing Gordon Hayward to the Boston Celtics in free agency, the Utah Jazz will undoubtedly take a hit in their quest to become contenders in the stacked Western Conference.Even after trading for point guard Ricky Rubio, Hayward bolted.While the allure of joining his former college coach Brad Stevens on the Celtics in a weak Eastern Conference was enough to sway Hayward, the small Salt Lake City market also might have played a factor in his decision.Former Jazz guard Trey Burke played in Utah for three seasons after he starred at the University of Michigan, and on Sunday he took to Twitter to destroy his former club.After a fan insulted him, saying, “I don’t blame Trey Burke. He just wasn’t talented enough,” Burke weighed in with the following burn:
Ouch.
When a fan then asked him why he thinks no one wants to play in Utah, Burke offered the following explanation:
Burke’s comments were odd, considering the opportunity that he was given with the Jazz.
After being drafted ninth overall in 2013, Burke started 68 of 70 games for the Jazz in his rookie season and put up 12.8 points and 5.7 assists over 32.3 minutes. The following year, he only started 43 of the 76 games that he played in, but still logged 30.1 minutes per contest, averaging 12.8 points and 4.3 assists.
In his third and final season with the Jazz, however, he became a rotational, backup combo guard. Despite playing 21.3 minutes, a clear decrease from his two previous campaigns, he still was able to average double-digits in the scoring column over his 64 games played, putting up 10.6 points and 2.3 assists per contest.
However, that wasn’t enough to impress Utah, who traded the former collegiate player of the year to the Washington Wizards in exchange for a second-round pick last summer.
Backing up John Wall for part of the year, Burke played just 12.3 minutes in the 57 games he payed in, averaging 5.0 points and 1.8 assists as his career hit a new low point.
Apparently, Burke doesn’t have very many fond memories of his time in Utah, given his remarks on social media. But, it’s hard to ignore that he was given an opportunity that he didn’t take full advantage of during his first two years in the league. But, he places the blame firmly on the franchise for his lack of development.
"They (Jazz) couldn’t break me. That's what they tried to do," Burke told a local Washington, D.C., sports radio station last fall. "They couldn’t break me, though. They gave me DNPs. Everybody asked me what’s going on, 'Why aren’t you playing?' There’s a reason everybody asked me that.”
Right now, Burke is an unrestricted free agent looking for a third team to give him a chance.