This first round series between the Utah Jazz and the LA Clippers is coming down to the wire and the Jazz are struggling mightily to make shots from the perimeter. The only way to turn their fortune around is to keep on shooting.
The Jazz must surely be stewing at how this series has turned out. The last three games have all been decided by less than seven points (Utah has won two), and none of them really should have been close. To me, Game 5 was perfectly indicative of this. The game could have been shot to bits in the first quarter had they knocked down some of their many open shots.
The Clippers’ defense has been porous all series long, but since the beginning of Game 4, it has been down right horrible. The Jazz are able to find a wide open shot on nearly every trip down the floor and it’s incredible how Utah has failed to take advantage in three straight playoff games.
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Combining Games 5 and 6, the Jazz have made 20-of-62 attempts from downtown (32 percent). With the way the Clippers have defended the three point line, it really isn’t a stretch to say the Jazz could have shot in the mid-50s, changing two hard-fought games into blowout wins.
Utah’s free throw shooting has been no better; they were 22-of-33 (67 percent) at the line in Game 6. This ultimately decided the game and possibly the series. You could argue that the Clippers shot just 15-of-26 from the free throw line (57 percent) but that would be a very weak argument because DeAndre Jordan and Luc Mbah a Moute combined to shoot 15 of those 26. On the other hand, George Hill who’s typically a phenomenal free throw shooter, posted four missed free throws which turned out to be nearly the final margin in the match.
It’s an understatement to say that the Jazz need to see big improvement in both three point and free throw percentage to walk away from LA with a victory in Game 7.
Utah Jazz
Here’s a stat that will blow your mind; this season (including the playoffs), the Jazz are an unbelievable 27-7 (.794) when Rodney Hood makes two or more three points shots. If you average that out over an 82 game season, if Hood makes two three’s in every game, the Jazz would have won 65 games this season instead of 51. The Jazz have also won their last seven games when Hood achieves this statistic, including all three this series.
As a Jazz fan, it’s frustrating to see your team outplay the opposition and dismantle their defense, then not be able to even win the game. If the Jazz shot the ball how they’re capable of, this series would have been over and the Jazz could have spent the last few days resting and constructing a game plan for their upcoming series with the Warriors. Instead, they find themselves in the predicament of having to face the LA Clippers on the road in Game 7 and perhaps facing elimination.
The Clippers aren’t a brilliant team, but they do have Chris Paul and he finds a way to win games if presented with the opportunity. So don’t give one of the NBA’s best point guards that chance. You can’t get away with outrebounding them, being more physical, playing the better defense and moving the ball quicker if you fail to make shots to cap off possessions.
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Chris Paul’s Clippers have dodged bullet after bullet this series. Let’s hope the Jazz can knock down some open shots and come away with a win in Game 7. On a side note, if the Jazz do get through to the second round, it looks as though Game 1 will be played on Tuesday at 8:30 pm MT (the date/time is not official, but would make sense as it is two and a half hours after the Wizards @ Celtics match begins).