Can the Utah Jazz Finally Make it Three in a Row?

The Utah Jazz have had their ups and downs all season but finally look poised to log their first three-game winning streak of the season.

If you had to choose one word to describe the 2015-16 Utah Jazz, what would it be?

Inconsistent? Battered? Energetic? Unpredictable? How about just straight up confusing?

The latter seems like a pretty accurate description up to this point. After falling to a lackluster Houston Rockets team twice in three games (separated by a very much justifiable loss to the San Antonio Spurs), the Jazz went on to defeat the red hot Miami Heat (no pun intended) who had won four of their last five games including impressive victories over the Indiana Pacers, Washington Wizards, and Dallas Mavericks.

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And the Jazz’s victory over the Heat wasn’t just some fluke victory but rather a come from behind win that was the result of a dominant second half which saw Utah outscore Miami by 19 points. Without Derrick Favors, Alec Burks, Rodney Hood, and of course Dante Exum, the Jazz benefited from enormous contributions from the likes of Raul Neto and Chris Johnson and Rudy Gobert’s return to the starting lineup provided a huge spark. More than anything, the Jazz exhibited the one trait that has been the key to any success and consistency they’ve had all year.

Heart.

This team isn’t without its flaws, but whenever the team collectively exhibits passion, focus, and intensity, the result tends to be significantly better regardless of any other factors.

No one showed more heart in the victory over the Heat than Gordon Hayward. After a stretch of so-so performances out of the Jazz’s leader, Hayward torched the nets with a season-high 34 points on 14 of 22 (63.6%) shooting. Hayward tends to get a bad rap from certain Jazz fans at times for being inconsistent and at times ineffective. But perhaps he is held to a higher standard than what is truly realistic. Nights like the game against Miami show just what Hayward is capable of. While it’s unrealistic to expect him to put up 30 points per game, it isn’t unrealistic to expect him to be as aggressive and assertive as he was against the Heat.

Particularly in the absence of so many key players, Hayward will have to continue to lead the attack. His perceived inconsistencies come more than anything from something that is more often than not viewed as an overwhelmingly positive trait – unselfishness. While it’s important for Hayward to continue to look to involve the team, particularly on those nights when his shots aren’t falling, there’s nothing wrong with him looking to be a little more selfish, taking a few more shots, and shouldering the offensive load. Utah’s win over Miami was just the second time on the year that Hayward has made ten or more field goals in a game. Both of those efforts resulted in a win over quality opponents (the first time was against the Los Angeles Clippers).

And once again on Sunday night, the aggressive Gordon Hayward came to play. He made ten field goals en route to a second straight Jazz victory as they defeated the Los Angeles Lakers 86 to 74. While Hayward wasn’t quite as efficient offensively, he still led all scorers with 25 points, shooting a solid 10 of 21 from the floor and was ferocious on the defensive end. His heart, energy, and leadership certainly carried over from the previous game. While the win wasn’t as exhilarating as the game against Miami, it was good to see the Jazz shake their seven-game road losing streak with the victory over the Lakers. Even with Rodney Hood back in the lineup, the Jazz were still shorthanded and a road win under such circumstances should provide the team with an important boost in confidence.

After Sunday’s victory, the Jazz now have the chance to win three straight games for the first time this season when they take on the Portland Trail Blazers at the Moda Center on Wednesday night. Winning that game would put them just two games under .500, a mark that they have continually approached all year but haven’t been able to meet since they were 10-10 following a win over the New York Knicks on December 9.

In order to reach and maintain a .500 record, the Jazz obviously have to get healthy, but apart from that Hayward needs to continue to lead the team, the “next man up” type players such as Neto and Johnson have to continue to contribute, and most of all the team has to consistently play with heart. Despite getting blown out by the San Antonio Spurs in both of the teams’ meetings, the Jazz’s resilience in the latest match-up was at least reassuring. Following last week’s loss, even the great Gregg Popovich was quick to praise the way the Jazz are playing despite their youth, injuries, and inexperience.

“It was good, but it wasn’t a fair fight,” Popovich said. “Those guys played really hard. I actually think they executed their offense better than we executed ours, but they are just missing so many guys. It’s a real tribute to that coaching staff and those players that come out every night like this and play their butts off.”

“Those guys played really hard. I actually think they executed their offense better than we executed ours, but they are just missing so many guys. It’s a real tribute to that coaching staff and those players that come out every night like this and play their butts off.” – Gregg Popovich following the Spurs’ win over the Jazz

A compliment like that from a coach of Popovich’s caliber shouldn’t be taken lightly. Despite all the bumps and bruises, this Jazz team refuses to quit. While they can’t control the consistency of every aspect of their game, they certainly can control the consistency of their effort. With an extremely light schedule ahead that consists of seven straight games against teams with losing records, the Jazz have an invaluable opportunity to go on a key midseason run.

However, wins have been far from guaranteed for the Jazz this season even against less talented teams and despite how well they’ve played for stretches. But when the Jazz have played with the focus and energy that shows they truly want it, they’ve been able to come out on top more often than not. It isn’t unrealistic to expect the Jazz to go at least 5-2 over this next stretch. Doing so will put them right at .500 and will likely create some vital separation from the ninth place Sacramento Kings after crossing the midway point of the season. If the up and down Jazz are unable to at least accomplish what seems a very manageable task such as that, it would further solidify their current 2015-16 identity.

Confusing.

All stats courtesy of NBA.com/stats