Utah Jazz: Warriors’ Comments on Utah Nightlife Blown out of Proportion

A recent ESPN article that described the Golden State Warriors’ reasons for wanting to play their next series in LA instead of against the Utah Jazz caused quite a stir, but in truth was somewhat misleading.

Just last week leading up to Game 6 of the showdown between the Utah Jazz and Los Angeles Clippers, I wrote about how Golden State ought to be cheering for the Clippers to win the series, due to the issues the Jazz could raise on the court.

Several NBA writers have expressed a similar viewpoint to mine, pointing out how the Warriors have made light work of the Clippers in recent seasons whereas they have yet to face a full-strength Jazz team this year and even a less than healthy Utah squad has caused some problems for them of late.

And according to a recent article from ESPN by Chris Haynes, apparently my opinion of how the Warriors should prefer to play the Clippers over the Jazz was absolutely correct. However, the cited reason for that has nothing to do with anything taking place on the basketball court as I alluded to. Instead, the article claims that the Warriors would have preferred to play the Clippers in the second round because “there’s no nightlife in Utah.”

Of course, as one might expect, the sensationalized headline definitely caused no small amount of angst among the Jazz faithful, as several took to social media to express their discontent with that supposed sentiment. There are plenty of great reactions to weed through, but in light of Gordon Hayward’s recent bout with food poisoning, this one has to be my absolute favorite:

In truth, no one’s really debating that Los Angeles offers more things to do and has more of a nightlife, but that’s really not the issue here. Rather it’s Golden State’s reported take on the impending series against the Jazz that’s bothersome.

It’s not hard to see why Jazz fans would feel disrespected by their attitude given that the article makes it seem that the Warriors are completely overlooking their opponent and focusing instead on how they can have a good time between games. In all honesty, in some ways fans are justified as a few of the quotes from the article certainly could be construed as demeaning towards Salt Lake City, most notably the ones from Golden State’s Matt Barnes and Andre Iguodala.

When asked about which town has the better nightlife, LA or Salt Lake City, Matt Barnes had the following to say:

"“No comparison. There’s no such thing, man. There’s no nightlife in Utah. Obviously, as players, you want to be able to have a little bit of a nightlife, but the main focus is winning games. But as far as nightlife, there’s no comparison to nightlife in Utah and L.A.”“You sit in your room. I think there’s an Olive Garden out there and then a Benihana. So you’ll definitely be locked in [on the game] all the way. L.A., you have a few more dinner options. You’ve got the beach right there and the sun, and I got family. I think as players, we’re pulling to go to L.A.”"

First of all, the obvious response to this is that, of course Matt Barnes is more concerned about the nightlife than the opponent as he’s not likely to even see any time off of the bench. His time “sitting in his room” will be pretty comparable to his time spent within Vivint Smart Home Arena.

Andre Iguodala’s comments about Salt Lake likely made Jazz fans’ blood boil even more:

"“The problem with Utah is that you’re just sitting there and your mind is, like, dead, because in L.A., you still got energy for the game. Because you’re in L.A., you’re like, ‘Man, this is just the vibe in L.A.’ but in Utah, it can kind of lull you to sleep. And then you’ve slept too long or I’m bored out of my mind and now you got to try to pump yourself up for the game. You know you’re in the playoffs and you’re supposed to be pumped anyway, but the vibe is just like, ‘Man, let’s just get out of here.'”"

Quite honestly, if Andre Iguodala finds himself “bored out of [his] mind”, “lulled to sleep” and just wanting to “get out of [Salt Lake], I’d have to say he’s kind of crazy and just really doesn’t know all the city has to offer. However, that’s a different topic for another day.

There’s no missing the criticisms in those quotes and any slight, perceived or real, is certain to send Jazz fans into a frenzy. Just ask Chris Paul how his rather innocent “homer” comment was received:

To be fair to Barnes and Iguodala, though, it appears in the ESPN article that the two of them were asked pretty loaded questions with the intent of getting such a reaction. Barnes did specifically say, “as players, we’re pulling to go to L.A.” but he isn’t exactly known as a reputable guy. And to say that his answer is an indication that the Warriors as a whole were pulling for the Clippers simply so they could enjoy the better night life in LA is more than a bit misleading.

In fact, in that ESPN article, despite its over-exaggerated headline, most of the piece has quotes from Warriors personnel either saying good things about Utah or mentioning that the focus is winning the series, not the nightlife.

Mike Brown, who is coaching the team in Steve Kerr’s absence, said the following:

"I disagree. I think if you really want to find something to get into (in Salt Lake City), I don’t care where you are, you can find something to get into.”"

Draymond Green (who I RARELY agree with so being pleased with his statement in this instance was hard for me to do) had the right mentality when he said:

"“It’s the playoff(s). Nobody worried about nightlife during the playoffs.”"

Finally, Steph Curry essentially seconded Green’s sentiment by saying:

"“Guys are disciplined. They know how to handle themselves in whatever city. Obviously, most of the guys here are more familiar with L.A. than Salt Lake City. But at the end of the day, if you’re worried about extracurricular during the playoffs and that’s your priority, then you got it twisted already. It’s a business trip wherever we end up going. We’ll be ready.”"

Even Iguodala who had some of the most negative things to say about Utah later redeemed himself by pointing out many things he liked about the state, then added that the atmosphere in Salt Lake was more conducive to the team getting to meet up and do things together rather than dispersing across a much larger city.

So to say, as the article framed, that the Warriors as a collective team were disappointed to not play the Clippers because they were looking forward to a more entertaining nightlife is a bit of a stretch. Sure, perhaps Matt “Warm the Bench” Barnes feels that way, but for the most part you get the vibe that the key guys on this daunting Golden State team aren’t worried about the location, opponent or the nightlife. They’re worried about winning the series and advancing.

Related Story: The Warriors Aren’t Afraid of Anyone, But Still Shouldn’t Want to Face the Jazz

Nevertheless, Jazz fans will likely take advantage of any excuse they can to rag on the Warriors, and they most certainly should. I can hardly wait to see the signs and hear the cheers that the Utah faithful come up with to punish Golden State for their insults of the state, whether those criticisms were real or exaggerated.

Perhaps Utah Jazz swingman Joe Ingles had the best response to the Warriors’ nightlife comments in the video below:

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Unfortunately, we’ll have a while to wait before we get to see the rabid Jazz fans in action as Game 3, the first game of the series in Salt Lake, isn’t until May 6th. Before then, the Jazz will be in action at Oracle Arena on May 2nd and May 4th.

Hopefully Golden State’s long break between the first and second round and the ensuing lack of nightlife in Salt Lake will allow the Jazz to catch the Warriors off guard and steal a game or two this week.