Hood, Favors score big as Jazz win over transitioning Sacramento team


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SALT LAKE CITY — Change is constant in the NBA.

Whether it’s changing locations, changing players or just changing plays, professional basketball is anything but constant.

The Sacramento Kings have been through all of the normal changes, but they can trump the entire league with this claim — they’ve had three different head coaches this season.

First, Mike Malone coached the team, before he was replaced by former Jazz coach Tyrone Corbin. After a disappointing showing, Corbin was removed and replaced by longtime coach and ESPN personality George Karl, who won NBA Coach of the Year in 2013. That amount of change makes the organizational changes the Utah Jazz made in the offseason look elementary in comparison.

This marked the second consecutive game Utah played Sacramento. The Jazz beat the Kings Sunday, picking up a 101-95 win in Sacramento. Fortunately for Utah, the results didn’t change, as the Jazz moved to 36-42 with a 103-91 win over Sacramento.

#UJ

The start was not pretty for the Jazz, as they trailed 49-43 at halftime. Utah had nine turnovers in the first half — a stat that negated Trey Burke’s half-court shot to end the first quarter.

Snyder said the start was an example of a lack of energy.

“I don’t think, to a man, the first half that we were as active,” he said. “They played really hard; I thought they played harder than us. There wasn’t a lot for us to feel good about at halftime.”

The second half was vastly different as Utah outscored Sacramento 60-42 in the half.

Tied at 78-78 in the fourth quarter, Utah went on a 15-0 run that included a series of Derrick Favors blocking a shot, getting a rebound and scoring a basket. Rodney Hood followed it up with a 3-point play.

Snyder said the second half was triggered by better defense.

“In the second half, we really got offense off our defense,” he said, as the Jazz forced seven turnovers in the second half. “Our guys that started the second half, I thought they really raised their level and the guys that came off the bench did the same thing.”

The Kings’ best player, center DeMarcus Cousins, didn’t play Wednesday, allowing the Jazz to dominate the paint with Favors and Rudy Gobert. Utah brought down rebounds.

Three Sacramento players — Omri Casspi, Carl Landry and Ben McLemore — finished with 16 points, but it was a different style of play without Cousins. Overall, the Kings are now 9-17 since the All-Star break.

Karl, who coached the Seattle SuperSonics to an NBA Finals appearance in 1996 with veteran stars like Gary Payton, has been handed a roster filled with talented-if-underachieving young players.

Sacramento Kings guard Ben McLemore (23) drives against Utah Jazz guard Rodney Hood (5) during the first quarter of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, April 8, 2015, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)
Sacramento Kings guard Ben McLemore (23) drives against Utah Jazz guard Rodney Hood (5) during the first quarter of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, April 8, 2015, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)

The former coach said it’s been an interesting challenge to pick up a roster midseason.

“The positives is I think I know the team now,” he said. “The weakness is, as a coach, you don’t have a lot of practice time; a lot of time to a lot of things that happen (on the court). You just try to do it by old tricks of the trade, and I’ve been a little disappointed in the record.”

The Kings’ record wasn’t helped by their inability to contain Favors and Hood. Favors finished with 18 points and 11 rebounds, while Hood finished with 20 points, eight rebounds and three assists.

Snyder said Hood’s strong play against Sacramento has come from several internal factors.

“It’s just Rodney playing well,” he said. “He’s had some stretches like that. Again, he knows right now we’re trying to make the most of this time he has because he hasn’t played as many minutes as some of the other guys. At the same time, we want to make sure he’s healthy, which he is.”

After scoring 25 points against the Kings in a win Sunday, Hood said he feels confident right now in his play.

“(It’s nice) just being healthy — being 100 percent healthy — and playing with energy,” he said. “(Energy) is my main focus every single night. I’m not worried about scoring; it just happens within the flow of our offense.”

One story line that gained steam on social media throughout the game was the amount of game time Gordon Hayward played. Hayward played just 19:35, and finished with four points.

Snyder said there has been talk of limiting Hayward’s minutes to keep him healthy.

“It’s not something we’ve thought about, just sitting him down for the rest of the year,” he said. “We have discussed, particularly at a back-to-back, there’s other guys at those spots we’re able to take a look at. Guys like Rodney who, when Gordon’s not in the game, their role is different. There’s a number of reasons in addition to us just trying to be smart about Gordon’s health.”

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