Mar 25, 2015; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard (0) shoots a free throw during the second half against the Utah Jazz at EnergySolutions Arena. Portland won 92-89. Mandatory Credit: Russ Isabella-USA TODAY Sports
The Utah Jazz have lost four of five games after an NBA-best 12-3 tear post-All-Star break. Certainly, as a young team still on a steep learning curve there’s plenty to be gleaned from close losses, but a fundamental flaw is rearing it’s ugly head all too regularly.
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With a late lead in their last two games, the Jazz should have been able to put each contest away much earlier, except for a fatal flaw: missed free throws.
Losing the last two games represents a huge shift in momentum for the Utah Jazz, a team that could have, should have won three of five instead of staring down the barrel of the three-game losing streak. Going down by a total of five points while leaving 20 missed free throws on the table is a stinger, to say the least.
Even without offensive weapons Gordon Hayward — sitting out the last pair of games due soreness incurred from a terrible fall — and Rodney Hood, who evidently ate at a bad sushi vendor, a big no-no for a land-locked desert state (I jest, gastric distress is the official listing), the Utah Jazz had these two games in the bag if not for freebies from the line.
At the rate they’re making them, the Jazz may as well just take one of the two and say “Peace out!” like Shaq did
Utah let the game stay close enough at the end of each that it allowed for the Minnesota Timberwolves and Portland Trail Blazers to take advantage and come back to win, rather than the Jazz forcing them to capitulate and go home.
On the season, the Jazz are a lowly 72.2% from the free throw line, although much of the overall percentage can be attributed to Rudy Gobert, 60% shooting on fouls. To be fair to Gobert, that mark is up from last season by quite a lot, although he did go only 50/50 on 12 trips in the last two.
When asked, Gobert recently noted that he doesn’t know what the problem in games is, saying he “can make ten in a row in practice.”
In the last two games, the Jazz shot a dismal 34-54 from the line as a team, 63%. They’re getting plenty of chances — 14th-most in the NBA, 23.2 chances per game — just not converting them at an acceptable rate.
After improving for two straight seasons, Derrick Favors‘ free throw percentage has dipped slightly each of the last two years, from a career best 69% in 2012-13 to 67% last year and 66% this. Against the Wolves he managed to sink only three of his seven tries, but bounced back to go 8-9 versus the Blazers for a two-game tally of 68% on 16 tries.
Maybe it’s just an inexplicable, unfortunate slump as a team, coming at the wrong times. The Jazz are actually better as a unit in the final five minutes of close games, shooting 75.7% in the clutch at the line in 2014-15.
At the rate they’re making them, the Jazz may as well just take one of the two and say “Peace out!” like Shaq did a few years ago.
There’s a plethora of reasons a young team can lose a close ballgame, but something as fundamental as free shots to boost the score shouldn’t be one of them. Whatever the case, the Utah Jazz are leaving free throws unmade. And it’s costing them wins.
It might be time for the rest of the squad to adopt Gordon Hayward’s rule of taking 100 free throws for every one he misses in a game.