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OKC: Did That Just Happen?
Written by The Agreement   
Wednesday, 25 November 2009 09:14

jazz_dis

Ouch. That one really hurt. I knew last night something was off-you know how sometimes you can just feel it? Well, I felt that way from the get-go. Like I said in my last post, if the Jazz didn’t come out ready to play, they would get beat. Well, they didn’t come ready to play, and they got embarrassed for the third time this season on their home floor by a team that they should have beaten. Call it lack of intensity, lack of focus, or lack of interest…it was just a bad night.

 

I’m not sure why this team has such a hard time putting away teams they are “supposed” to beat, but something tells me it has to do with a little of each of the above listed things. Much like last year when OKC pimp-slapped us around in their building, last night the Jazz played one of the worst games in their recent history. I really think they thought they had the game won to open up the third. By the way, what is it with this team and the third quarter?? I find myself just hoping they make it through the third without having a massive collapse these days. Not sure why every player on the Jazz decides to play at 50% speed during that part of the game…maybe they are bored, I don’t know, but I do know that if they played every game from start to finish the way they play in the last six minutes of the fourth, we might be undefeated. The Jazz tend to get hungry at the end of games; the only problem is that in most of the games they have lost, they have taken the third quarter off.

 

I guess all I can really say is this game was a huge, massive, ginormous disappointment. It shouldn’t be that hard to get up for a division rival at home, but apparently this team struggles with it. OKC was up for it-did you see how they were pressing the backcourt even when the game was well in the bag? When was the last time you saw any member of the Jazz press the backcourt like that? My bet is never, because they don’t do it.

 

Effort Grade: D-. It would have been an F, but they acted like they cared in the final six minutes of the game.

 

Player of the game: CBooz. He is the MVP of this team so far this season. Suddenly I think trading him might not be such a good idea.

 

Next up: Chicago on Thanksgiving. How many times in the last couple of years have the Bulls beat us in the last seconds of a game? If you include pre-season, I’m counting three. I think the Jazz are due a victory against these guys. All things considered, Utah has played excellent basketball over the last couple of weeks. Let’s hope that last night’s game against the Thunder was just a little bit of a reality check for them, and that they can regain their focus against the Bulls.

Comments (5)Add Comment
...
written by CVD2312, November 25, 2009
I can't wait to play you guys on Saturday
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written by Theagreement, November 25, 2009
Right back at ya.
Sonofabich
written by Hammy, November 25, 2009
I hate this Jazz team, they are the biggest bunch of pansy asses ever to set foot on the Delta Center Floor. I hope Larry Miller has better things to do in heaven than watch this train wreck. Here's my 2 cents worth on this crap fest:

Deron - you were lazy last night. I dont think that I ever saw you put your head down and run hard all night. Step it up son.

Maynor - Stop shooting the damn ball. You had 2 good games, but since then you have thrown up an air-ball on every 3 out of 4 shots. Your signature floater needs to be put away for awhile until you learn how to shoot it over NBA players.

Booze - You're doing OK, not great, but OK. I still hate you though.

AK - You're doing pretty good as well. Keep it up.

Brewer - Start looking for work in another city fella. I seriously yell at the T.V. every time he jacks up a shot that is more than 2 feet from the basket.

Memo - Get the lead out of your ass. You looked like 50 year old grandpa running up and down the court last night. Did the flu make you age 15 years in one week?

Sloan - Change your damn defensive philosophy already. Your team sucks at shooting the three and sucks even more at defending it. Do you know why the Jazz always lead the league in turn-overs? Because you insist that they jam the ball into the paint on every possession no matter what. These guys are talented shooters, let them practice the 3 and for the love of everything holy tell them to defend it.

Millsap - Here one game, gone the next. You played harder and more consistently when you were a poor NBA player. The money is changing your work ethic.

I dont have one good thing to say about the Jazz right now. And here is a tip to all the other teams in the NBA - if you want to beat the Jazz all you need to do is hustle and run hard. I dont think that our players like to sweat.
Rebuttal to the original post
written by Clarkpojo, November 25, 2009
I can't argue with the essence of the post. The team lacked energy and hustle. It was disheartening. The team didn't play hard enough until the end of the game.

As for your MVP choice: Good to see you still have your Boozer glasses on. And good to see that there is still something to debate about this team. The clear MVP or MVPs of both this game and the season thus far have been Andrei Kirilenko and Paul Millsap. Last night Andrei was the single player to give us a chance to win. He slowed Kevin Durant enough to give us a chance to win and he attacked the rim ferociously. +/- statistics have little value on a game to game basis, but over the course of a season, they start to tell a story. I thought that Millsap and AK were the best players so far this season, before I looked at the +/- stats, but I wasn't surprised to see them both at the top of the leader board at 44 and 29 respectively.

The reason that Millsap has had such a positive influence on the team is because he is one of the only players who defends the rim. Teams don't get layups and dunks like they do with Boozer and Okur defending the rim.

AK plays good defense, but offensively he draws fouls. That is something that Boozer and Okur don't do either.

What was the play that energized the team to play their best stretch of basketball on that 8-0 run in the 2nd quarter? It was Millsap's block on Etan Thomas when he pinned the ball on the glass and started a fastbreak. Plays like that spur the team. Who makes those plays on defense for the Jazz? Millsap and AK. There is your answer to where the energy is coming from. No one on the starting lineup provides energy to the game, except Brewer from time to time and right now we know how he isn't fitting in the offense.

Just my two cents. But I find it interesting that you want to see the Jazz play with more energy and tenacity and then call Boozer the MVP for the season because he puts up sexy numbers at the end of the day. He also puts little pressure on defenses by shooting elbow jumpers and fadeaways and plays passable, but no inspiring defense.
...
written by Theagreement, November 25, 2009
Thanks for your input. The reason I picked Booz as my MVP is because he is not only putting up sexy numbers game after game, but he is also hitting nearly 70% of his shots in the clutch (last five minutes of the game) and that is higher than any other Jazz player. Not only that, he is yelling at guys to get into place and talking with Deron nearly every time down the floor at the end of every game. In other words, he is leading, something that both Paul and AK have never done in either of their careers. Don't get me wrong, I love both of them, but they both seem content to play their respective roles and shun being a vocal presence on the floor and in the locker room. An MVP should be a leader, not just a good or even great player on the floor, and Boozer is filling that role right now. Any other guy on the team could step up and take it, but besides Deron, no one has.

And I would argue that over the last few games his defense has been on the more inspiring side. It isn't great, but he looks better man-to-man than he ever has. He also brings passion to the court...when he makes a big play, the crowd gets into it because he is into it. AK looks like he is at a funeral half the time.

I haven't been a huge Boozer fan either, but my "Boozer glasses" are on because he is making a difference on this team. Millsap might play better D and might be tougher all around, but he also needs to play consistant on both ends of the floor and act like a leader if that is indeed what he is going to eventually be. You can hate Boozer all day long, but in the end, he is producing at his peak right now and deserves credit. He isn't the reason the Jazz are struggling.

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