Utah Jazz: Keys to a First Round Victory over the LA Clippers

Key #1 – Contain the Role Players

In my preview from earlier in the week of the individual match-ups between these two teams, I indicated that Chris Paul and Blake Griffin clearly have the edge over the Jazz counterparts at their positions, while their third All-Star, DeAndre Jordan, is right about dead even with Jazz center Rudy Gobert.

In essence, the Clippers surely boast more star power and while it will be important for Utah to game plan around them and attempt to slow them down, you can bet that one way or another, that trio of Paul, Griffin and Jordan are going to find a way to be successful.

To some extent, the Jazz can allow that inevitable fact to happen and still survive. What they can’t allow to happen, though, is for those three to pour in their usual scoring output while the Clippers role players also have free reign.

The Clippers have oft been criticized for having a lackluster bench. However, while it’s certainly still not without its faults, it’s definitely better now than it has been in recent years. With that being the case, Utah will have to find a way to minimize the reserves’ impact if they hope to have any chance of winning.

Anyone who has followed much of the Jazz-Clippers series over the past couple seasons knows that renowned Sixth Man Jamal Crawford has been an absolute Jazz killer. Often times it’s seemed as if Crawford would have a harder time missing against Utah than he would making. Utah’s final contest against the Clippers was a perfect example as Crawford finished with a season-high 28 points on an incredible 8-of-12 shooting performance from the field.

And it’s not always necessarily about the number of shots he makes or the points that he puts up, but rather his ability to sink the most timely shots to crush Jazz momentum or propel his team at just the right moment that has been the most devastating.

While Crawford’s ability to hurt opposing teams is somewhat expected as that’s simply what he’s known to do, other Clippers role players have also enjoyed somewhat uncanny success against the Jazz as well. One of the first that comes to mind is Austin Rivers.

Rivers’ season stat line of 12 points per game on 44.2 percent shooting from the field and 37.1 percent from deep has taken an absurd leap when he’s faced the Jazz. In four contests against Utah this season, Rivers is averaging 15 points on 56.8 percent field goal shooting (25-of-44) and 50 percent shooting from behind the arc (7-of-14).

That includes an incredible 19-point performance on 8-of-11 shooting in LA’s first victory over the Jazz this year. He’s shredded Utah’s backup point guards and has been a key piece of each Clippers win over the Jazz. Utah absolutely has to have an answer for Rivers if they hope to win this series.

Rivers did miss the end of the regular season with a left hamstring injury and it’s still unlikely that he’ll be in action for tomorrow’s Game 1, but rather appears that he’ll return later in the series. Regardless of when he suits up though, he’s proven that he can make an impact for the Clippers, and Utah needs to limit his influence.

Beyond Crawford and Rivers who have destroyed Utah this season, the Jazz also have to be particularly wary of Marreese Speights and Luc Mbah a Moute.

Speights certainly didn’t torch the Jazz this season – he only scored in double figures one time and never made more than a single three-pointer in a game versus Utah – but as a 37.2 percent three-point shooting big, he can be a dangerous weapon for this Clippers team by stretching the floor and taking Rudy Gobert out of the paint.

If Speights gets hot, not only will his three-point shooting ability alone provide LA with an extra offensive punch, but he’ll open up the lane for several of the Clippers’ formidable drivers and could put Utah in an extremely tough pinch defensively.

Finally, while Mbah a Moute isn’t considered to be much of an offensive threat for the Jazz (though he did shoot above 50 percent and finish in double figures in each of LA’s final three contests of the season), he’s certainly known as a solid defender, and in two of the three contests in which Gordon Hayward played this season, the Clippers forward did an excellent job of locking him down.

In the first contest, Hayward went a dismal 2-of-12 from the field to finish with his second-lowest scoring output of the season, just a meager seven points. Gordon bounced back in the second contest with a 29-point outpouring, but then returned to his struggling ways while being covered by Mbah a Moute in the final game as Hayward converted on just 5-of-12 shots for 13 points.

In summary, LA’s big three is more than likely going to be a handful and do a lot of damage against the Jazz. However, while minimizing that damage will be crucial, the true key to be able to slow this Clippers team as a whole will be to neutralize the impact of their role players.

Because if Paul, Griffin and Jordan are clicking on all cylinders while Rivers, Crawford and Speights are hitting shots and Mbah a Moute is locking down Hayward, that’s an overwhelming barrage that Utah will in no way be able to overcome. On paper, Utah’s bench might appear more talented than that of Los Angeles, but the Jazz have struggled with them this season and will need to reverse that if they hope to win.