it's here!
Printable View
it's here!
[URL]https://www.deseret.com/sports/2020/8/13/21367805/utah-jazz-denver-nuggets-nba-playoffs-first-round-defense-in-the-bubble-rudy-gobert-nikola-jokic[/URL]
[QUOTE]Though the night started off with smiles and congratulations, Mitchell had one of his worst games of the season, going 1-of-12 from the field and finishing with just four points, and it took a [URL="https://www.deseret.com/sports/2020/1/31/21115545/jordan-clarkson-utah-jazz-loss-denver-nuggets-donovan-mitchell-quin-snyder-37-points"]37-point performance from the Jazz’s newest addition, Jordan Clarkson[/URL], to keep the game close.
[/QUOTE]
Looks like they've done a good job on him all year. Hopefully if his shot isn't falling he's not forcing it and passing to open teammates. One Clarkson on the team is enough!
[QUOTE]With Joe Ingles and Royce O’Neale also failing to make much of an offensive dent that night, Clarkson took over. While fans can often point to games where Clarkson plays a little too much in isolation, it’s a game like the one in Denver that serves as a good reminder that sometimes you need a guy on the court who can just get a bucket, and after the game Snyder said that’s exactly what he loves about Clarkson.
[/QUOTE]
Except for the game before last and the scrimmages he's always playing 1 on 5. There were a few games where it was nice to have someone hitting shots but mostly he has to go!
[QUOTE]The Nuggets are 3-4 in the bubble with their last seeding game against the Toronto Raptors on Friday. They also rested stars in some games but had one of the toughest schedules in the season restart. What became abundantly clear for them is that their defense is nowhere near where they want it to be. Of the 22 teams in the bubble, the Nuggets have the worst defensive rating, and head coach Mike Malone said it’s his biggest concern heading into the playoffs.
[/QUOTE]
That's where this series will be won and lost. Both teams can score points
[URL]https://www.deseret.com/sports/2020/8/14/21367885/utah-jazz-paul-millsap-denver-nuggets-nba-playoffs[/URL]
Can only imagine if he'd been here with Rudy.:facepalm
[URL]https://www.deseret.com/sports/2020/8/15/21367907/nba-playoffs-orlando-utah-jazz-denver-nuggets-donovan-mitchell-rudy-gobert-nikola-jokic[/URL]
[QUOTE]With two of Denver’s starters, Gary Harris and Will Barton, injured, they’ve turned to Torrey Craig and Michael Porter Jr. while in the Orlando bubble. Craig has done an unbelievable job on Donovan Mitchell this season, hounding him to the point of nearly keeping the Jazz star scoreless in their first meeting this season. It’s forced Mitchell to work quickly to get the ball out of his hands and work more off-ball.
[/QUOTE]
I'm guessing Harris and Barton are playing. Doesn't sound like they are hurt seriously
[QUOTE]In order to free up Mitchell, the Jazz could easily work to switch Craig onto someone else, or allow Conley to become more of a facilitator when Craig and Jamal Murray are guarding him and Mitchell, since the Jazz can get past Murray with more ease.
[/QUOTE]
They have other options. This isn't Rubio and Favors anymore. This series will be won by defense not offense
[QUOTE]Ingles and O’Neale will be tasked with guarding Paul Millsap and Porter, respectively, and those could end up being really key assignments. The Nuggets’ length on offense is their greatest weapon outside of Jokic. Slowing down Jokic and Murray is going to take a 48-minute effort, but when Ingles and O’Neale aren’t on the floor, the Jazz lose the edge in holding back two of Denver’s most lengthy and lethal outside shooters in Millsap and Porter.
[/QUOTE]
Shouldn't O'Neale be on Murray?
[QUOTE]Spurts and flashes is what we’ve seen so far from the Jazz in the NBA bubble. Even in the double-overtime loss to the Nuggets, the Jazz fell off and got sloppy during portions of the second half. If they aren’t able to find some consistency through the game, this will be an even tougher uphill battle than it already promises to be.
[/QUOTE]
It's what we've seen all year at least defensively
[QUOTE]Likewise, if the Nuggets are without Harris and Barton throughout the series, Denver’s bench production could become a liability. The team that is able to maintain effort and efficiency from its reserves could end up with a pretty significant advantage.
[/QUOTE]
still have more depth than the Jazz without them
[URL]https://www.deseret.com/sports/2020/8/15/21367902/rudy-gobert-donovan-mitchell-utah-jazz-denver-nuggets-nba-playoffs[/URL]
[QUOTE]While both players were taken by the Nuggets (Gobert in 2013 and Mitchell in 2017), the circumstances of their trades to the Jazz were pretty drastically different. Early in the 2013 pre-draft process, Gobert was considered a potential high lottery pick, but his stock tumbled in the months leading up to the draft and he slipped to the 27th pick.
[/QUOTE]
I don't remember him being considered a top prospect. They talked about his record length. He was drafted where he was supposed to as far as I remember
[QUOTE]The Jazz benefited greatly when both players came to Salt Lake City for pre-draft workouts. Gobert had struggled in some previous workouts with other teams, but later stories were told of how he dominated in Utah, [URL="https://chorus.voxmedia.com/compose/8308669e-172c-44be-a4db-ff71c919d6b1"]which led the Jazz to trade the 46th pick (Erick Green) and cash to the Nuggets for the Frenchman[/URL].
[/QUOTE]
They bought the pick. It was known before the draft that the Nuggets were selling it. Gets old hearing how they drafted these guys. They drafted them for the Jazz. These trades are made before the picks
[QUOTE]As such, the Gobert trade was largely a side note on a night Utah made numerous moves (it also traded for Raul Neto, the 47th pick that night).
[/QUOTE]
Who was obviously better than Burke the first time he set foot on the floor in summer league and was sent overseas anyway. Typical Jazz move
[QUOTE]Of course, both Gobert and Mitchell have made the Jazz look smart and the Nuggets not so much, as the duo leads Utah and both were named All-Stars this season, [URL="https://www.deseret.com/sports/2020/1/30/21115384/rudy-gobert-donovan-mitchell-nba-all-star-reserves-utah-jazz"]coincidentally hearing the news while on a road trip in Denver[/URL], just hours before playing the Nuggets. It’s interesting that their paths through the draft, and the expectations placed on them before their careers began, were so different when everything they would do moving forward would be linked and in lockstep.
[/QUOTE]
It makes every team who could have drafted them look bad.
[QUOTE]It’s not that the Jazz’s roster lacks depth beyond Mitchell and Gobert or that the weight of the Jazz’s postseason success is squarely on their shoulders, but given the state of the Jazz, without Bojan Bogdanovic and underdogs in the series, if the pair don’t play well, there’s little hope for the Jazz to advance. That means increased minutes, increased responsibility and increased pressure.
[/QUOTE]
I see them as the favorite. They at least have stretches where the D doesn't suck
[URL]https://www.deseret.com/sports/2020/8/15/21369342/utah-jazz-denver-nuggets-nba-playoffs-donovan-mitchell-rudy-gobert-torrey-craig-nikola-jokic[/URL]
[QUOTE]The Nuggets are 3-0 against the Jazz this year, although the latter was that double-overtime game in Orlando last week. While the Nuggets don’t have a superstar like James Harden or Russell Westbrook or Chris Paul, they do present a couple of serious problems for Utah’s two best players.
[/QUOTE]
In what world is Jokic not a superstar? Doubt anyone in the league would take Westbrook over him and I doubt many would even take Harden over him
[QUOTE]For the Jazz to win, they’re going to have to get excellent performances from Gobert and Mitchell because without Bojan Bogdanovic, they just don’t have the firepower to match the Nuggets, who seem to come at you from all sides.
[/QUOTE]
Plenty of firepower. Mitchell, Conley, Gobert and Clarkson surrounded by shooters is plenty. Can they defend is the question?
[QUOTE]The Nuggets may not have the superstars, but they have much better depth than the Jazz, who can’t rely on double-digit games from the likes of Rayjon Tucker and Miye Oni, who played well in those games in Orlando the Jazz didn’t care to win.
[/QUOTE]
They don't need it. They need other guys to hit open shots, defend and play their roles
[QUOTE]The Jazz need Mike Conley to keep playing the way he has through much of the bubble season and definitely will need more production out of Joe Ingles, who hasn’t shot well over the last two weeks.
[/QUOTE]
Joe just needs to be Joe. He's not a scorer. Quit trying to make him out to be one
[QUOTE]You can tell what the NBA thinks about the Jazz-Nuggets matchup. The first three games are all in the middle of the day Utah time, 11:30 a.m. Monday and 2 p.m. on Wednesday and Friday. The two teams don’t get a prime-time game until Sunday, when the Jazz play their second “home” game at 7 p.m. MDT.
[/QUOTE]
Probably was the best game in the bubble too!
[URL]https://www.deseret.com/sports/2020/8/15/21367888/denver-nuggets-season-injury-and-depth-issues-which-have-cropped-up-once-again-in-the-nba-bubble[/URL]
[QUOTE]The Nuggets, who finished the season as the No. 3 seed in the NBA’s Western Conference, feel like they have all the necessary pieces, but concerns that plagued them in the postseason last season — injury and depth — are still cropping up, and defensive problems have begun to mount with the playoffs right around the corner.
[/QUOTE]
Might be the deepest team in the league. They traded away good players at the deadline they have so much
[QUOTE]A reserve rotation of Torrey Craig, Monte Morris, Malik Beasley, Jerami Grant, Mason Plumlee, Porter Jr. and a smattering of others sometimes left players with DNPs for no reason other than there weren’t enough minutes for everyone.
[/QUOTE]
that sound like a depth issue?
[QUOTE]After the annual All-Star intermission, the Nuggets were gearing up for the home stretch of the season and realizing that small defensive lapses here and there throughout the year were becoming a regular occurrence. Denver had the 10th best defense in the league in 2018-19 but was slowly dipping throughout the 2019-20 season and was regularly letting their offense dictate the game rather than the other way around.
[/QUOTE]
sounds like the Jazz
[URL]https://www.deseret.com/sports/2020/8/15/21367890/utah-jazz-denver-nuggets-nba-playoffs-orlando-bubble-donovan-mitchell-rudy-gobert-quin-snyder[/URL]
[QUOTE]Bogdanovic was lost in the offense, the defense was horrible and the Jazz looked disjointed. Fast forward to a few weeks later, and the Jazz were 8-3 to start the season and things were looking pretty good. Conley was struggling a little, and so was Ingles in his new role on the bench, but that was something everyone knew would take some time to get used to.
[/QUOTE]
Everyone didn't know that. People were expecting him to be a 6th man. He's not a scorer. There was real concern about his contract and if he was getting old
[QUOTE]Even still, the Jazz shot through December and January with a 19-2 run that was a huge part of why Mitchell and Gobert earned their first All-Star bids. After a big roster shakeup right at Christmas time that saw them waive Green and end the Dante Exum era with a trade to the Cleveland Cavaliers that brought Jordan Clarkson to Utah, the Jazz started to look like they were filling out nicely.
[/QUOTE]
Dante Exum era! :roll: Gobert should have already earned his all star berth over the past 5 years. Mitchell got his on hype
[QUOTE]But as the calendar turned from February to March, it really started to feel like the Jazz were beginning to find a groove. They’d turned away from playing Davis, giving Tony Bradley more minutes behind Gobert. Conley seemed like he was starting to settle into something comfortable, Bogdanovic was shooting the lights out and, as always, Mitchell and Gobert held the fort down on a nightly basis.
[/QUOTE]
Bradley started playing when they got Clarkson. Niang to the 4 for Green. Mudiay had been playing well before that with Conley out
[QUOTE]Then in May, just as some of the noise regarding the two All-Stars started to die down and the NBA was finalizing plans for an isolated restart to the season in Orlando, the Jazz announced that Bogdanovic would be having season-ending surgery on his injured wrist.
[/QUOTE]
Why didn't he have it in March?
[QUOTE]The Jazz used to have the identity and reputation of a defensive juggernaut. With rising stars and one of the best centers in the league, it was clear what you’d be getting if the Jazz were your opponent. Now, heading into a first-round playoff series against the Denver Nuggets, there’s not much that’s certain about this team. Actually, the only good constant in the bubble seems to be the player that was most inconsistent through the season, Conley.
[/QUOTE]
He wasn't though. Had a few bad games to start the year is all
[QUOTE]They could be a deep team with a second unit of Clarkson, Bradley and Georges Niang holding onto a lead for the starters in perfect form, or they could be a Jazz team so desperate for help that they’ll turn to any number of players who scored their first NBA points during roster experimentation in the bubble.
[/QUOTE]
They aren't deep. The rookies give them some hope on that front now at least though
Jeremy Woo: Mentioned this yesterday, but a couple quick draft clarifications. Per sources, the [URL="https://*********.com/social/"]NBA will break ties tomorrow between NOLA and SAC (lotto teams tied pre-bubble), and HOU/OKC/UTA (playoff teams tied post-bubble) to finalize the draft order outside the lottery[/URL].
– via [URL="https://twitter.com/JeremyWoo"]Twitter JeremyWoo[/URL]
[URL="https://*********.com/social/tweets/"]Donovan Mitchell: Congrats to my guy @Mike Conley and his wife Mary on their newborn!!! Somethings are just bigger thab anything!![/URL] Happy for you bro[IMG]https://s0.wp.com/wp-content/mu-plugins/wpcom-smileys/twemoji/2/svg/1f64f-1f3fe.svg[/IMG]
[URL]https://www.deseret.com/sports/2020/8/16/21367912/commentary-utah-jazz-nba-playoffs-donovan-mitchell-rudy-gobert-denver-nuggets-mike-conley[/URL]
[QUOTE]Maybe the Jazz should take a similar approach. I’m not saying rest the starters and only throw in G-Leaguers against Denver. But, while Conley is gone, would it be so bad if Miye Oni was a part of the regular rotation?
[/QUOTE]
Some of the rookies should be playing regardless. Need more size, length and D. I'd start with Morgan and Brantley at the 4 but more size on the wing with Tucker, Oni and Brantley would be nice as well
[QUOTE]I freely admit that I could be wrong. The Jazz could finally make everything click, Conley could come back, the team could beat Denver and keep winning and shock the world. The NBA is undefeated in weird things happening. But, I wouldn’t bet on any that occurring.
[/QUOTE]
I think they should be looking to beat Denver rather it's with rookies or whoever next to Rudy, Mitchell, Ingles and O'Neale.
[URL]https://saltcityhoops.com/three-time-the-case-for-gobert-as-dpoy/[/URL]
[QUOTE]The “midseason swoon,” Hollinger mentioned was indeed very frustrating to watch, and might have had something to do with the now-public tension between Gobert and fellow Jazz All-Star Donovan Mitchell. Many of the voters spoke very highly of Gobert but if he comes in second, that slump might be what costs Gobert the award.
[/QUOTE]
they want to give it to someone else. Giannis probably deserves it. Davis might get it just because
[QUOTE]Eric Walden: Donovan Mitchell’s first postgame comments: [URL="https://*********.com/social/"]“Huge shoutout to Juwan Morgan. He did a hell off a job. … I know a lot of people were probably confused by the move, but we trust him. Shots to him for stepping up.”[/URL]
– via [URL="https://twitter.com/tribjazz"]Twitter tribjazz[/URL]
[/QUOTE]
Yep loved his hustle. Play more of those kids. Nice to finally see a real PF on the floor again!
[QUOTE]Shams Charania: [URL="https://*********.com/social/"]The New York Knicks are hiring Utah Jazz assistant Johnnie Bryant as associate head coach under Tom Thibodeau,[/URL] sources tell @The Athletic @Stadium.
– via [URL="https://twitter.com/ShamsCharania"]Twitter ShamsCharania[/URL]
an Begley: [URL="https://*********.com/social/"]Knicks will add Utah assistant coach Johnnie Bryant to Tom Thibodeau’s coaching staff, SNY sources confirm. Bryant is viewed as a strong player development coach.[/URL] Bryant worked w/Utah’s Donovan Mitchell during his Jazz tenure. Bryant’s addition was 1st reported by The Athletic.
– via [URL="https://twitter.com/IanBegley"]Twitter IanBegley[/URL][/QUOTE]
He was Millsap's personal coach before he coached the Jazz and was working with Hayward before Mitchell. Might be hard to replace him
Andy Larsen: [URL="https://*********.com/social/"]Johnnie Bryant will stay with the Jazz for the duration of the playoffs[/URL].
– via [URL="https://twitter.com/andyblarsen"]Twitter andyblarsen[/URL]
[URL]https://saltcityhoops.com/staff-post-reacting-to-mitchells-57-utahs-loss-and-more/[/URL]
[QUOTE][B]Steve[/B]: Confident my colleagues will address perimeter defense, another issue was with the Niang-Mudiay-Bradley combination that did not work. At all. In their eight minutes together, they had a [URL="https://stats.nba.com/lineups/advanced/?Season=2019-20&SeasonType=Playoffs&TeamID=1610612762"]93.8 offensive rating[/URL]. The Jazz are thin, we get it, but they need something from the role players outside of Clarkson’s scoring. A lot of good things happened with Juwan Morgan (see this [URL="https://twitter.com/Ben_Dowsett/status/1295499244879532032?s=19"]tweet[/URL], this [URL="https://twitter.com/Ben_Dowsett/status/1295501968987680768?s=19"]tweet[/URL], this [URL="https://twitter.com/BensHoops/status/1295473381379198977?s=19"]tweet[/URL], or this [URL="https://twitter.com/millerjryan/status/1295461623088332800?s=19"]tweet[/URL]) and Andy Larsen of the Salt Lake Tribune [URL="https://www.sltrib.com/sports/jazz/2020/08/17/triple-team"]wonders if he should get the backup center minutes[/URL]. A lot of buzz surrounded the other young players during the bubble tank, should they be on Quin’s radar?
[/QUOTE]
Without a doubt. Morgan/Brantley should be their power forwards. Brantley, Oni and Tucker would give them more length and D on the wing as well. They can all shoot to some degree too
[QUOTE][B]Cole[/B]: The Jazz were incredibly strategic during the eight games leading up to the playoffs, doing everything they could to avoid a first round matchup with the Houston Rockets. The Jazz struggle to defend the three-ball, which is why a matchup with the Denver Nuggets seemed much more favorable, as they only attempted 30 three-pointers a game compared to Houston’s 45 a game. Against the Jazz, the Nuggets shot 41 three-pointers and hit 22 of them (53.7%). The Jazz have got to do a better job defending the three-point line and force the Nuggets to go inside.
[/QUOTE]
go inside with Rudy on the perimeter guarding Jokic?
And second, Bryant has a strong relationship with Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell, the Elmsford, N.Y. native who went off for 57 points in Utah’s loss to Denver in a playoff game Monday and becomes a restricted free agent in 2021. [URL="https://www.forbes.com/sites/adamzagoria/2020/08/18/knicks-hire-utahs-johnnie-bryant-want-donovan-mitchell-badly/"]“They want him badly but may be a possible conflict with R.J. [Barrett],” a source with knowledge of the Knicks thinking said of Mitchell. “There’s a debate in the front office if they can play together.”[/URL]
– via [URL="https://www.forbes.com/sites/adamzagoria/2020/08/18/knicks-hire-utahs-johnnie-bryant-want-donovan-mitchell-badly/"]Adam Zagoria @ Forbes.com[/URL]
[URL]https://basketball.realgm.com/wiretap/259254/Warriors-To-Use-No-2-Overall-Pick-In-Trade-Talks[/URL]
Bojan could make sense there. Probably have to take Wiggins though
[QUOTE]StatMuse: The Jazz outscored the Nuggets by 33 points when Jordan Clarkson was on the floor tonight. That +33 +/- is the highest by any Jazz player in a playoff game since 2000. pic.twitter.com/uWPSC9tZ8O – via Twitter statmuse
[/QUOTE]
4-12/1-6 3PT
Is there a more useless stat? He did have 4 assists somehow. Don't remember him passing
[URL]https://www.deseret.com/sports/2020/8/21/21396264/3-keys-utah-jazz-denver-nuggets-game-3[/URL]
[QUOTE]The Jazz were tremendous defensively throughout, starting with the first quarter as the Nuggets scored just 14 points in the opening 12 minutes. Most notably, Utah did an outstanding job of getting in passing lanes to force turnovers. The Jazz finished with nine steals, and Denver committed 17 turnovers overall.
[/QUOTE]
first time I've seen anyone talk about the defense which is the difference in the series as I predicted. If the Jazz play D they can beat anyone with or without Bojan or Conley. They don't have Ricky and Favors spotting up in the corners anymore. Probably better without Bojan I hate to say
[URL]https://saltcityhoops.com/goberts-improved-passing-out-of-the-short-roll-gives-jazz-new-a-dimension/[/URL]
[QUOTE]This exact type of situation is what the Jazz have to iron out to get to the next level as a basketball team. Gobert does not have great touch in terms of a floater or hook shot, his lanky stature makes it difficult for him to be a good ball handler, and his center of gravity does not lend to him backing down opponents in the post. Because of these factors, teams are willing to rotate a smaller defender onto him without fear of being punished at the rim. However, rotating these defenders onto Gobert means that their man is open, and it leads to scramble situations that a good passing team like the Jazz can take advantage of.
[/QUOTE]
I like his hook shot. Made a good one in the last rout. He's alright when he puts the ball on the floor as well
[QUOTE]But you can’t just have a guy like Gobert rolling free to the basket, or else he would get dunks all day, so Denver (and many other teams) makes up for this by bringing in a defender from the weak side to stop him from getting to the rim.
[/QUOTE]
He is getting dunks all day!
[QUOTE]Big men can deal with this situation in a variety of ways, but given that Gobert is not comfortable backing his man down or shooting hook shots, there is a strong need for Gobert to be able to make the correct read and make a fast pass to the open man.
[/QUOTE]
don't think they want a post up. Dunks and 3's!
[QUOTE]Nikola Jokic rotates to O’Neale who fakes the shot, but my favorite part about this is he spikes the ball on the floor to get it back in his hands more quickly to pass to the wide open Joe Ingles for a three. This shot was all generated from Millsap rotating to stop Gobert.
[/QUOTE]
yeah the spike was nice instead of traveling or a turnover of some kind
[QUOTE]Give Denver credit on this play, they rotate quickly and correctly to get the stop. You can criticize various decisions by the Jazz wing players here — like O’Neale not shooting that three — but the Jazz want to play this type of game.
[/QUOTE]
he's the new Ingles passing up shots he needs to take. Now he likes the ones well back of the line which he rarely seems to make
[QUOTE]Seeing these types of passes from Gobert should be one of the most encouraging recent developments for Jazz fans.
[/QUOTE]
he and their other bigs have been doing it for some time
[URL]https://saltcityhoops.com/quick-thoughts-as-mitchell-explodes-again-utah-goes-up-3-1/[/URL]
[QUOTE]It would be hard to overstate just how much Utah has had Denver’s number on offense. The Jazz haven’t had a game with a non-garbage time offensive rating of less than 120 in this series, [URL="https://cleaningtheglass.com/stats/team/29/gamelogs#tab-context_hc_offense"]per Cleaning the Glass[/URL]. Even if you just look at halfcourt offensive possessions (taking out all transition play), Utah has scored 123 points per 100 possessions. That’s the best among all playoff teams by a ridiculous margin. The next best team (Milwaukee) is exactly 17 points back in terms of halfcourt efficiency in these playoffs. It’s just bonkers how easy Utah has been scoring against Denver’s set defense.
[/QUOTE]
It should have been expected. Great offense against bad defense. How do the Jazz get better on D should be the question because it will need to be better
[URL]https://saltcityhoops.com/murray-leads-nuggets-past-jazz-to-force-game-six/[/URL]
[QUOTE]“We’ve played a great series up to this point,” Mitchell said in his postgame interview. “There will be times where you do lose your composure. We’ve done a great job at keeping it through this series and keeping our heads in it. For us we’ve got to go out there and continue to do what we do. We lost that tonight. I don’t think it’s a concerning thing for us, we’ve just got to not overreact, get right back to it, get in the gym, and make our shots.”
[/QUOTE]
you made plenty of shots. Gave up too many at the other end
[URL]https://www.sltrib.com/sports/jazz/2020/08/30/jazz-nuggets-game/[/URL]
[QUOTE]Go down the roster. Is there anybody else? Mike Conley’s shorter and slower than Mitchell. Miye Oni simply isn’t that good of a one-on-one defender yet. Jarrell Brantley, Juwan Morgan, and Georges Niang are obviously too slow. Emmanuel Mudiay kills you in team defense and on offense, and Nigel Williams-Goss, um, isn’t the answer. Rudy Gobert, maybe? But then Jokic just kills whoever is guarding him.
[/QUOTE]
Conley would be better than Mitchell or Clarkson. You didn't even mention Tucker. He plays D and has the size. I'd give him Oni and Brantley a shot. Try something!
[QUOTE]Maybe putting Clarkson on Murray was a message sent, as much as anything. “O’Neale, Ingles, Mitchell, you’re being outplayed to such an extent that [I]Jordan Clarkson is a better defensive option than you. Get better.” Or maybe the message was to the front office: “Get me a guard defender, Dennis. This roster isn’t good enough.”[/I]
[/QUOTE]
that should be obvious. Conley and Bojan should be shopped. Clarkson needs to go
[QUOTE]It’s clearly the bench minutes that kill the Jazz most: they were -14 in the eight minutes Mitchell sat in Game 6. The Jazz’s bench is terrible. In Game 7, Mitchell might need to play 43, 44 minutes, something like that. Given the Jazz’s other poor center options, the same is probably true of Gobert.
[/QUOTE]
Give the rookies a shot. Morgan played well as did others in the lead up games.
[URL]https://www.sltrib.com/sports/jazz/2020/09/02/utah-jazz-denver-nuggets/[/URL]
[QUOTE]Can they be? I think so. I think Bogdanovic’s return really would help. Again, the Jazz lost the bench minutes in a major way: the Jazz were -8 and -9 respectively in Georges Niang and Morgan’s six minutes each. Depth was this team’s Achilles heel, except the mythical Achilles’ heel wasn’t brightly flashing “Danger” in yellow lights like the Jazz’s second unit was.
[/QUOTE]
Imagine that. You spend your mid level on a backup center instead of the starting pf you obviously needed. You carry 6 rookies on a team that is supposedly playing for a title. You do nothing at the trade deadline to address ay of it. :facepalm
[QUOTE]“We just got down here and we worked and everybody just locked in, from the rookies to the coaches, but we just got to do more. With Bojan coming back, not putting everything on Bojan, but with him coming back it’s another weapon. This won’t happen again.”
[/QUOTE]
and another defensive problem
[QUOTE]Changes around the edges would help a lot, and depth is key. Derrick Favors is a free agent and is said to be extremely interested in returning. The Jazz will have to fight for Jordan Clarkson’s signature. They’ll need to use the Bi-Annual Exception to pick up a back-of-rotation piece, and probably make a trade or two to get someone who can help. They have a draft pick, and moderate salary ballast in Ed Davis’ contract.
[/QUOTE]
Please no on Favors! They need a veteran starting pf to go with Morgan and Brantley that can spread the floor and defend ideally. They have Bradley/Morgan/Brantley/1st round pick to back up Rudy. Need to deal Ed somehow and get a capable veteran 3rd center. Clarkson needs to go somewhere else. He's not a first option as much as he thinks he is. Doesn't fit. Conley and Bojan should be shopped. Need to get bigger and better defensively and deeper.
[url]https://bustingbrackets.com/2020/09/01/nba-draft-2020-updated-first-round-mock-draft-following-lottery-drawing/4/[/url]
need a center first and a pg 2nd