2018-19 Utah Jazz Regular Season Thread

[babyjax13]

I'm not an over-reactor, and will love the Jazz from now until the day I die. Still...

The OKC loss wasn't terrible, but adding that to losses to the damn Grizz ad the freakin' Pelicans (who don't even play Davis in the 4th quarter), I'm quickly giving up hope that this team will win a playoff series this year. Beating MIL & DEN means next to nothing when you drop those games. There's simply something missing. It's not an X's & O's thing, it's not a talent thing, most the time it's not an effort thing. They do seem to lose focus too often, but there's still some undeterminable X-factor that just isn't there this season. Maybe they'll still pull it together, but my confidence as a fan is surely shaken.

Looking forward to them proving me wrong. Happy to see Exum back on the court. Hoping he can help.

Our best offensive player is 22, I think that's most of what it is. In two years he'll be averaging 29/5/5 and Rudy will still be in his prime. The Warriors and Rockets will have faded a bit, and we'll be right up there with the best teams in the West. We just have to build properly, try to add value players, don't waste assets, etc.

[TNJazz]

As much as people get on and complain about Ricky (quite a bit of it justified), games like the last few spotlight how important he is to the success of this team. His floor leadership and ability to take pressure off Ingles and DM to initiate the offense is incredibly important. When we rely on him to be a volume shooter, that isn't his strong suit and as many have painfully pointed out, not how we should be using him. Having ingles and/or DM be the PRIMARY offense initiators takes away so much from their games, this is why I hope Dante can get healthy and start contributing at a level near where he was prior to his injury. Keep Rubio starting and bring in Dante to add pressure and solid defense. Losing both Neto and Rubio while Dante has been down has really started to take its toll of this team. Hopefully they can right the ship soon so they don't fall out of 8th. So much for the "Easiest" schedule and how that was supposed to equate to wins.

[sipclip]

As much as people get on and complain about Ricky (quite a bit of it justified), games like the last few spotlight how important he is to the success of this team. His floor leadership and ability to take pressure off Ingles and DM to initiate the offense is incredibly important. When we rely on him to be a volume shooter, that isn't his strong suit and as many have painfully pointed out, not how we should be using him. Having ingles and/or DM be the PRIMARY offense initiators takes away so much from their games, this is why I hope Dante can get healthy and start contributing at a level near where he was prior to his injury. Keep Rubio starting and bring in Dante to add pressure and solid defense. Losing both Neto and Rubio while Dante has been down has really started to take its toll of this team. Hopefully they can right the ship soon so they don't fall out of 8th. So much for the "Easiest" schedule and how that was supposed to equate to wins.

Without a doubt this team is much better with Ricky than without him because of our lack of ball handlers and shot creators. Unfortunately Lindsey has built such a flawed team that currently we have no one that can step in to take pressure off of Mitchell besides Ricky. Burks would have been extremely useful right now and of course Exum can possibly fill that void but he is a walking injury and can't be relied on.

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[KqWIN]

I think Ricky is important in the OKC matchup because they trap. The last time he played them he turned the ball over every time he touched it, but theoretically that's the matchup that fits him. He should be able to pass out of double teams and find the right man. Then there are the other matchups where the other teams dare our ball handlers to shoot. That's not his forte...but he is another guy who could get hot.

Like Sip said, this team is very flawed and puts a ridiculous burden on Mitchell. Ricky is the second guy by default. He may have serious difficulties performing the role, but there's a reason why he's the default. Nobody else is there.

[stitches]

As much as people get on and complain about Ricky (quite a bit of it justified), games like the last few spotlight how important he is to the success of this team. His floor leadership and ability to take pressure off Ingles and DM to initiate the offense is incredibly important. When we rely on him to be a volume shooter, that isn't his strong suit and as many have painfully pointed out, not how we should be using him. Having ingles and/or DM be the PRIMARY offense initiators takes away so much from their games, this is why I hope Dante can get healthy and start contributing at a level near where he was prior to his injury. Keep Rubio starting and bring in Dante to add pressure and solid defense. Losing both Neto and Rubio while Dante has been down has really started to take its toll of this team. Hopefully they can right the ship soon so they don't fall out of 8th. So much for the "Easiest" schedule and how that was supposed to equate to wins.

Without a doubt this team is much better with Ricky than without him because of our lack of ball handlers and shot creators. Unfortunately Lindsey has built such a flawed team that currently we have no one that can step in to take pressure off of Mitchell besides Ricky. Burks would have been extremely useful right now and of course Exum can possibly fill that void but he is a walking injury and can't be relied on.

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Yeah, Ricky is useful for most of the games and he's better than whatever else we have at the guard position. Grayson Allen or Raul Neto are not the solution to our problems. I've been complaining a ton about Ricky lately, but that's not because I feel like we should be playing someone else - we shouldn't. It's because I think he's not the right piece going forward and because I fear about what we are going to do in the summer. The problem of this team is not that we are playing Rubio this much... the biggest problem is that we actually HAVE to play him this much.

[KqWIN]

As much as people get on and complain about Ricky (quite a bit of it justified), games like the last few spotlight how important he is to the success of this team. His floor leadership and ability to take pressure off Ingles and DM to initiate the offense is incredibly important. When we rely on him to be a volume shooter, that isn't his strong suit and as many have painfully pointed out, not how we should be using him. Having ingles and/or DM be the PRIMARY offense initiators takes away so much from their games, this is why I hope Dante can get healthy and start contributing at a level near where he was prior to his injury. Keep Rubio starting and bring in Dante to add pressure and solid defense. Losing both Neto and Rubio while Dante has been down has really started to take its toll of this team. Hopefully they can right the ship soon so they don't fall out of 8th. So much for the "Easiest" schedule and how that was supposed to equate to wins.

Without a doubt this team is much better with Ricky than without him because of our lack of ball handlers and shot creators. Unfortunately Lindsey has built such a flawed team that currently we have no one that can step in to take pressure off of Mitchell besides Ricky. Burks would have been extremely useful right now and of course Exum can possibly fill that void but he is a walking injury and can't be relied on.

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Yeah, Ricky is useful for most of the games and he's better than whatever else we have at the guard position. Grayson Allen or Raul Neto are not the solution to our problems. I've been complaining a ton about Ricky lately, but that's not because I feel like we should be playing someone else - we shouldn't. It's because I think he's not the right piece going forward and because I fear about what we are going to do in the summer. The problem of this team is not that we are playing Rubio this much... the biggest problem is that we actually HAVE to play him this much.

To clarify, Ricky isn't inherently a bad player. It's not a Shelvin Mack situation where our starter is a 3rd string PG. What makes this a serious issue is what we're asking on him to do when he's out. He has to be a scoring threat in PnR and space the floor when he's off the ball. Ricky does a lot of things well, but those are not two things that you should rely on him to do. But he has to, because that's all we've got.

[babyjax13]

I have this really weird feeling that we are going to offer Draymond a three year max contract and double down on being a tremendous defensive team that can pass but not shoot. That or Bojan Bogdanovic (Indiana).

[TO11]

I have this really weird feeling that we are going to offer Draymond a three year max contract and double down on being a tremendous defensive team that can pass but not shoot. That or Bojan Bogdanovic (Indiana).

That won’t happen. Firstly, Draymond would never come to Utah, he would take less money to avoid Utah. Secondly, Utah would never offer him. He doesn’t fit Jazz DNA. In this case both parties swipe left.


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[Crunch 99]

Given these factors below, I would consider moving Neto up to the number two pg and leaving him there until/if Neto gets hurt again, regardless of when/if Exum is healthy again. Invest minutes in Neto down the stretch. I am probably overreacting, but I am losing confidence in Exum for this particular season and playoffs. Start over with Exum in the off season.

- There are only 14 regular season games before the playoffs.

- Exum looked like he forgot how to play basketball in his three games back.

- Exum went out of the game last night with a sore right knee.

- By contrast, Neto looks as sharp as he has ever looked, perhaps even better, even after having missed more games than Exum this season.

[KqWIN]

I agree, I think it’s a lost season for Exum. I can see him coming in situationally in a playoff series to guard someone like Harden...br Neto should be the default. He’s playing so well and the bench units have been dominant with him in he game.

We are +17.7 per 100 with him on the court. That’s incredible.

[Inigo Montoya]

I don't think we can count on Neto more than we can count on Exum. He's injured just as much.

[LesGrossman]

I think it is very obvious that Ricky isnt the perfect fit for the Jazz. He is most effective with the ball in his hands, initiating the offense with a pick and roll or just going by his defender, drawing 2-3 defenders and finding the open man. This is what happens whenever they run horns or a simple spread pnr for him; he attracts multiple defenders. What the jazz actually run is either a Mitchell isolation or a motion with constant passing and cutting. In both scenarios Ricky is basically turned in to one of the worst spot up shooters in this league. The same thing happened in Minnesota for half a season (a terrible half); once Thibs realized its the wrong way, and handed Rubio the keys, the season turned around completely into one of the best of recent Wolves history. I keep wondering what makes Coaches decide to run this; the only explanation i could find is that he is shooting a lot better in practise and they believe he can be an effective outside shooter.

That being said, i generally dont like the idea of just turning away from any player because he isnt the perfect fit. Some years ago it was much more frequent to adjust the offense to the set of players at hand, and some coaches - Pop, D'Antoni, Carlisle for example - still have the ability. They dont move in with a static, unchangeable offense and look for the right players to fit in but rather look at who they can work with and adjust accordingly. I believe that at this point in the season its really about time Snyder makes some adjustments because for good or bad this is what we will run for for the remainder of this season. Defensively things work fine, offense needs a lot of work before it will hold in the post season.

[KqWIN]

When Ricky draws 2-3 defenders that's great, but that should honestly never happen. There's no reason to double team Ricky as he is one of the worst scorers in the league out of PnR. You can very easily go under the screen and make him shoot. Teams do this time and time again. Even if he gets to the rim, he's a very bad finisher around the hoop and the roll man defenders is likely there anyways.

Teams do this by the way. There are consistently daring him to shoot. If you can't see this happening, I don't know what to tell you. It's very obvious and the reason why so many of his PnR's are ineffective. Rubio plays well when he is willing and able to make shots. As a whole, he's bad at making them and too often unwilling to shoot them at all.

Ricky does the little things well. He makes so many plays with deflections and being in the right place at the right time, but he's bad with the ball and bad without the ball. It is what it is.

[Crunch 99]

With Exum done for the season, Neto is going to be the backup PG regardless of how the two were playing. But I think Neto was/is the right choice down the stretch even if Exum wasn't done. Neto returned to action with an impressive backup PG game, whereas Exum looked out of sorts.

So I am crossing my fingers and furiously knocking on wood that Neto can stay healthy the rest of the season. Incredibly, Neto will appear in fewer games than Exum this regular season even if Neto manages to play in every remaining regular season game.

Best wishes to Exum for a full recovery. Go Jazz!

[TNJazz]

With Exum done for the season, Neto is going to be the backup PG regardless of how the two were playing. But I think Neto was/is the right choice down the stretch even if Exum wasn't done. Neto came back to action with an impressive backup PG game; Exum did not.

So I am crossing my fingers and furiously knocking on wood that Neto can stay healthy the rest of the way and throughout the playoffs. Incredibly, Neto will appear in fewer games than Exum this regular season even if Neto plays in every remaining regular season game.

Best wishes to Exum for a full recovery. Go Jazz!

I can't help but believe that Neto will really flourish in this new role, now that it is very obvious that he is the primary backup, and that he will be getting regular minutes. It has been terrific to watch him improve each year and see him become a solid addition. While I have always liked him, he is really proving to be an important piece for this team. Someone, who when called upon, can be a reliable energy guy. He plays with a bulldog tenacity and I love to see underdogs rise up and make an impact. Now lets hope he remains healthy. Not sure why the injury bug has hit our point guards so much this season, but an important result of that is we have discovered how much more flexible this team can be with others running the show (Ingles, DM), making us more of a threat come post season when we can counter other teams counter moves with flexible personnel.

[sipclip]

At least we have Grayson Allen waiting in the wings to take over for Rubio and Exum. Oh wait never mind.

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[KqWIN]

At least we have Grayson Allen waiting in the wings to take over for Rubio and Exum. Oh wait never mind.

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We have no young talent waiting in the wings. It's frustrating. We also still have no PG of the future, unless you're counting Mitchell. It will have been 5 first round draft picks without an answer. 2 on Burke. 1 for Exum, Hill, and Rubio each. That's how you destroy your youth movement.

[Denizfeital]

No kidding, but looking at our schedule, other than The Jazz playing against themselves, is there a good reason why them will not finish 13-0 ?

Mon,Mar18 @ Washington
Wed,Mar20 @ New York
Thu,Mar21 @ Atlanta
Sat,Mar23 @ Chicago
Mon,Mar25 vs Phoenix
Wed,Mar27 vs Los Angeles
Fri,Mar29 vs Washington
Mon,Apr1 vs Charlotte
Wed,Apr3 @ Phoenix
Fri,Apr5 vs Sacramento
Sun,Apr7 @ Los Angeles
Tue,Apr9 vs Denver
Wed,Apr10 @ LA Clippers

If they play seriously, we may end up very high in the standings and have home court advantage.

What do you guys think?

Regards,

Deniz

[KqWIN]

No kidding, but looking at our schedule, other than The Jazz playing against themselves, is there a good reason why them will not finish 13-0 ?

Mon,Mar18 @ Washington
Wed,Mar20 @ New York
Thu,Mar21 @ Atlanta
Sat,Mar23 @ Chicago
Mon,Mar25 vs Phoenix
Wed,Mar27 vs Los Angeles
Fri,Mar29 vs Washington
Mon,Apr1 vs Charlotte
Wed,Apr3 @ Phoenix
Fri,Apr5 vs Sacramento
Sun,Apr7 @ Los Angeles
Tue,Apr9 vs Denver
Wed,Apr10 @ LA Clippers

If they play seriously, we may end up very high in the standings and have home court advantage.

What do you guys think?

Regards,

Deniz

I guess the thing to say here is that there is no reason why the Jazz lose a lot of games they should win.

I think home court advantage will be difficult to get and I don’t think it’s advantageous. I’d definitely rather have the 6 or 7 seed than the 4th seed.

[zero24gravity]

Rudy was named Western Conference player of the week, so now he & Mitchell have had that honor in 2019.

https://www.nba.com/jazz/news/rudy-gobert-named-nbas-western-conference-player-week