The Triple Team: 3 thoughts on Jazz vs. Thunder


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SALT LAKE CITY — Three thoughts from Utah Jazz beat writer Andy Larsen as the Oklahoma City Thunder routed the Utah Jazz 111-89.

1. Bad Jazz defense all night

The Jazz's second quarter defense doomed them tonight. After all, the Jazz allowed 40 points in that quarter, letting the Thunder shoot 14 of 19 from the field. Just for fun, here's the Thunder's shot chart in the 2nd quarter:

The Triple Team: 3 thoughts on Jazz vs. Thunder

Not great, Bob.

In the end, the Jazz's defense just hasn't been consistent so far this season. Over the last seven games, for example, the Jazz have averaged just a 109 DRtg, and that won't cut it with the above-average-at-best offense the Jazz are capable of putting up, hence the 2-5 record over this stretch.

So what's going wrong? I asked Jazz coach Quin Snyder and Gordon Hayward to diagnose.

Snyder: "I don't feel like we have had energy and focus that we need to have. So that leads to breakdowns. Sometimes energy can make up for breakdowns. We are making dumb plays on defense that I know we know not to make. It's just a lack of concentration collectively. I feel like we can be better."

Hayward: "We gotta be connected. We gotta have all five guys connected at the same time. Hopefully we can get back to that. ... I think it's a combination of that we're not all on the same page, and also that they have two of the best players in the world. When you make a mistake against a really good team, they'll expose you and they'll get good shots and put a 10-0 run on you."

It can't be blamed on any one player or unit, either. None of the Jazz's lineups or players are defending particularly better or worse than any other lineup (though, the starters are much better offensively than the bench), it's just the whole team that seems like it's disconnected. When you play the strong-side-heavy defense the Jazz do, they have to stay on a string defensively, and players are making far too many mistakes on that end, which leads to defensive breakdowns.

2. Jazz in the paint

The Jazz got dominated in the paint tonight, which is uncommon for this team. The Thunder actually only ended up outscoring the Jazz 44-38 inside the paint for the night, but on far fewer attempts. In the end, the Thunder shot 18 for 22 from within the restricted area, while the Jazz shot 17 for 31.

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In theory, the Jazz should be a lot better at protecting the paint than they showed Monday. Indeed, they usually are: in terms of the battles inside the paint, the Jazz had been outscoring teams by 8 points per game.

With Rudy Gobert and Derrick Favors defending, teams shouldn't be scoring that frequently inside the paint. But tonight, they were by getting the Jazz in transition, and then causing breakdowns in the half-court defense that gave the Thunder relatively easy looks.

On the other end, though, it has to be noted that Serge Ibaka and Steven Adams did a terrific job denying the Jazz's shots down low. There were several layups and dunks that looked like they would be easy for the Jazz to convert, but Ibaka or Adams came up with tremendous blocks, seven in total for the game. It's not just Durant and Westbrook that make the Thunder, but the interior defenders as well.

3. Enes Kanter's return

Enes Kanter media session Monday night was a complete 180 from the comments and actions that made him a villain last March in his initial return to Utah.

Kanter said, "I just want to make it clear, I had no problems with any of the players or any of the fans," and later added coaches onto that list.

And asked what he thought about the Jazz's improvement since he left, Kanter said, "They play pretty good. I'm really happy for them. It worked out for both sides."

He even had his trademark sense of humor showing. In March, when he was asked if he'll miss anything about Utah, he answered, "Mountains. That's it." When asked about the question Monday night, he put his spin on the answer: "I always like mountain views, good views. I opened my curtains today and I saw the mountain views, it was pretty good."

Had Kanter responded this way in his first return to Utah, he could have avoided being booed so mercilessly, fairly or unfairly. It's good to see that he felt regretful about what he said, and has moved on from his time in Utah.

By the way, so too have the Jazz. When I asked Quin Snyder about if his players were at all more interested in this game than the others, he answered, "At this point, not really."

Monday night's scoreline also is evidence of that notion.

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