The J-Notes
Fansided

Utah Jazz: Making the case for Joe Ingles as sixth man

By John Keeffer

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - AUGUST 01: Joe Ingles of the Utah Jazz poses during an NBL Media Opportunity at Cruise Bar on August 1, 2017 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Matt King/Getty Images)
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - AUGUST 01: Joe Ingles of the Utah Jazz poses during an NBL Media Opportunity at Cruise Bar on August 1, 2017 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Matt King/Getty Images) /
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Thabo Sefolosha defense
ORLANDO, FL – December 13: Dewayne Dedmon #3 of the Orlando Magic goes for the layup as Thabo Sefolosha #25 of the Atlanta Hawks defends the basket during the game on December 13, 2014 at Amway Center in Orlando, Florida. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2014 NBAE (Photo by Fernando Medina/NBAE via Getty Images /

Defensive upgrade to handle elite wings

Ingles has shown that he is a very capable defender in the NBA. One of the most enjoyable sights last season was seeing an opponent size Ingles up with the thought that it should be a breeze getting to the basket, only to have the ball poked out by those long arms.

It happened constantly, and it’s the greatest.

Last season, Ingles led the team in steals with 1.2 per game. He also rated very well in most of the advanced defensive metrics. He was 16th league-wide in steal percentage and 18th in defensive rating.

Clearly, Ingles is an extremely underrated defender…but Thabo Sefolosha is still better.

All the numbers back it up. He finished in the top 20 of the NBA in many of the defensive metrics. Namely, steals per game (16th), steal percentage (5th), defensive plus/minus (5th), defensive RPM among small forwards (7th) and defensive rating (11th). He was also fifth among wings in points saved according to NBA Math.

One of the biggest advantages to starting Sefolosha over Ingles, is he can wear down the elite NBA wings before Ingles takes over. In the West alone, we have Kevin Durant, Kawhi Leonard, Paul George and Jimmy Butler. At 6-foot-7, with a 7-foot-2 wingspan, he is better built to handle the top scorers in the NBA.

If the video below doesn’t get you excited about adding him into our fold of elite defensive players, I don’t know what will.

Starting Sefolosha allows our best wing defender to play more minutes against the top wings in the league. Joe Ingles is a sneaky good defender, but he is better suited to guard smaller guards and backups, while playing spot minutes against the elite wings. Being our sixth man lets Ingles play to his defensive strengths.

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