Utah Jazz vs. Maccabi Haifa: Keys to the Game

Key #2 – Shut Down the Perimeter

Aside from that aforementioned poor showing in the second quarter, overall Utah’s defense was pretty solid throughout the rest of Wednesday’s game. However, the Kings were able to enjoy relative success from the three-point line as they finished the game shooting 10-of-30 from deep.

Had Utah’s opponent been an experienced NBA team, though, that percentage would have likely been much higher as they allowed Sydney to have several open looks. In many ways, the Jazz didn’t look all that sharp when defending the three-point line and they got pretty lucky that the Kings weren’t able to capitalize more frequently.

Maccabi obviously isn’t an elite shooting force either, however, the Jazz can’t afford to repeat their lackluster perimeter defense. If Haifa is able to get hot in a way that the Sydney Kings couldn’t, it could present a real issue for the Jazz.

Despite having an overall sturdy defense, the Jazz were mediocre defending the perimeter last year as they held opponents to a three-point percentage of 35.8 percent, good for just 17th in the league. Therefore, with a potentially better defense this season, it’d be nice to see Utah elevate that ranking and hopefully we’ll see that start in tomorrow’s preseason contest.

Especially considering that a team like Maccabi will be undersized compared to the Jazz and unable to attack the paint all that well with a guy like Rudy Gobert in the middle, they’ll likely depend heavily on three-point shooting to stay in the game. With that being the case, shutting down that facet of their game will be absolutely crucial.