Four-Point Play: Mavericks Push Utah Jazz to the Brink

With a chance to break through the playoff door, the Utah Jazz stumbled through a loss to the Dallas Mavericks instead and may have left themselves on the outside looking in.

Though it was a mild spring evening in Salt Lake City, the Utah Jazz were even milder in Monday’s pivotal game against the Dallas Mavericks. With a playoff berth on the line, the Jazz lost a heartbreaker to the veteran Mavs, 101-92. The loss pushed the Jazz to the brink of the lottery, while Dallas clinched a playoff spot.

Utah was led by Gordon Hayward, who had 26 points. Shelvin Mack added 18 points, while Derrick Favors, playing on one leg, had 11 points.

Dirk Nowitzki led Dallas’ experienced brigade with 22 points on 12 shots, while ex-Jazzmen Wes Mathews and Deron Williams stuck another dagger into Jazz fans’ hearts with 20 and 23 points respectively.

Rudy Gobert’s ankle injury with seven minutes to go in the second quarter was the turning point of the game. Without Gobert, Utah’s defense did not communicate and allowed the experienced Mavericks to run an efficient offense. In the end, the injuries were too much for Jazz to overcome.

1) Jump Shot Happy

The Jazz were without an option in the post. Gobert was forced out and Favors was hobbling. The next best player on the post is Jeff Withey, who is still trying to figure out what he has done wrong. Trey Lyles and Trevor Booker do not have a post-up game.

Consequently, the Jazz needed their threes to fall. However, they shot 27 percent for the game from the three-point land. Mack, Hayward and Rodney Hood had at least a three-inch height advantage over their counterparts in Williams, Mathews and J.J. Barea. And yet, they could not take advantage of their height. Hood, in particular, was anemic, shooting 1-11.

Unless you are Ray Allen or Steph Curry, relying on your jump shot alone is probably not the best course of action. There must be a fall back option for every wing player and therein lies the importance of the post-up game.

Shaun Livingston is a prime example of surviving in the NBA with a post-up game. After losing his explosiveness to a gruesome injury, he developed a post game. No team can hide a small defender on him.

It is particularly sad to see Hayward not having developed a post-up game after being in the league for six years. Hayward needs to channel in his inner Kobe Bryant and work hard during offseason to add to the post-up game to his repertoire.

2) Lack of Planning

In spite of the injuries, the Jazz played hard during the season. Still, the combination of losing Gobert, a hobbling Favors and a circumspect Alec Burks were just too much for Jazz to overcome against the Mavs. Rick Carlisle is a smart coach, and he ran two defenders at Hayward every time he touched the ball.

The Mavericks challenged other players to beat them. Without Gobert or a fully healthy Favors or Burks that it is a tall ask.

On the other hand, Quin Snyder and Jazz were happy to allow Dirk and D-Will to dominate them. Ideally, you would want to challenge Raymond Felton or Barea, who was returning from a groin strain, to beat you. However, the Jazz had a different plan of attack and it failed spectacularly.

3) Coach’s Big Man Bet

Not playing Withey was a huge factor in this game. Without Gobert and Favors healthy, the Jazz couldn’t keep the Mavericks out of the paint. The most important part of defense is communication and the Jazz suffered multiple breakdowns because of a lack of communication from their replacement big men.

Lyles is a rookie and gets a pass. Booker, though, is not a communicator on the defense. Withey would have been huge in this situation. While he did play five minutes, it was too little, too late to make a difference in the game.

With Gobert on the floor, the Jazz allowed only 96 points per 100 possessions yesterday. Without him, the Mavericks torched the Jazz for 118 points per 100 possessions. While Withey isn’t Gobert, he is a capable rim protector and a good defender and may have been able to stop the bleeding.

Instead, Snyder doubled down on energy over proven defense and lost the bet and the game.

4) Playoff Picture

Things aren’t looking rosy, but the Jazz do have a narrow chance of sneaking into the playoffs. However, for that to happen, the Sacramento Kings will have to wake up from their tankathon and beat the Rockets in Houston. Moreover, the Jazz will have to beat the Lakers in Los Angeles in Kobe’s final game.

Luckily, the Jazz will know the result of the Rox-Kings game before they tip off in Los Angeles.

If it’s all over by then, Coach Quin might as well give rest to his starters to play Trey Burke, Chris Johnson, Joe Ingles, Lyles and Withey as his starters.

Next: An Open Letter to Jerry Sloan

Next up for Jazz, will be the LA Lakers in Los Angeles on Wednesday. Will that be the final game of the season for the Jazz? Stay tuned.