The J-Notes
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Utah Jazz: Three adjustments that must be made for Game 2

By Jared Woodcox

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - APRIL 15: Donovan Mitchell #45 of the Utah Jazz dunks two points against the Oklahoma City Thunder during the first half of Game One of the Western Conference in the 2018 NBA Playoffs at the Chesapeake Energy Arena on April 15, 2018 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by J Pat Carter/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Donovan Mitchell;
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - APRIL 15: Donovan Mitchell #45 of the Utah Jazz dunks two points against the Oklahoma City Thunder during the first half of Game One of the Western Conference in the 2018 NBA Playoffs at the Chesapeake Energy Arena on April 15, 2018 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by J Pat Carter/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Donovan Mitchell; /
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OKLAHOMA CITY, OK – APRIL 15: Carmelo Anthony #7 of the Oklahoma City Thunder and Jae Crowder #99 of the Utah Jazz look for the ball during the second half of Game One of the Western Conference in the 2018 NBA Playoffs at the Chesapeake Energy Arena on April 15, 2018 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by J Pat Carter/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Carmelo Anthony; Jae Crowder
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK – APRIL 15: Carmelo Anthony #7 of the Oklahoma City Thunder and Jae Crowder #99 of the Utah Jazz look for the ball during the second half of Game One of the Western Conference in the 2018 NBA Playoffs at the Chesapeake Energy Arena on April 15, 2018 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by J Pat Carter/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Carmelo Anthony; Jae Crowder /

The Jazz need to eliminate second chance points

While watching Game 1, I found myself uttering on several occasions, “Man, the Jazz are just getting killed on the boards!” Looking back, the discrepancy wasn’t nearly as bad as my “eye-test” mind had originally calculated. OKC barely won the battle of the boards 46-42 and the offensive rebounds, where I thought Utah was especially outplayed, ended up being knotted at nine apiece.

Not only did both teams give up the same number of offensive rebounds, but the Jazz actually held the Thunder below their offensive rebounding season average of 12.5 per game.

So why did it feel so one-sided? Well, KSL’s Andy Larsen hit the nail on the head in his post-game ‘Triple Team’ piece where he stated the following:

"What really hurt the Jazz was how the Thunder took advantage of those situations. Despite only having nine offensive rebounds, OKC scored 19 second-chance points. That’s obviously way too many, and the Jazz will need to do a better job of staying focused if the ball doesn’t end up in their hands, maybe even helping down low to prevent those kinds of putbacks."

That, my friends, is exactly where the problem resided. The Jazz didn’t necessarily do a bad job on the boards, but when they did give up a rebound, it often had a deadly effect. OKC maximized every offensive rebound they got to the tune of an astounding 19 points. In spite of Paul George’s hot shooting or Russell Westbrook’s incredible performance, one could certainly argue that fact as the difference in the game.

If the Jazz had just shut down those offensive boards even further and eliminated those easy second chance opportunities, they may have very well been able to overcome the other offensive punches thrown by OKC. If they’re going to find success in Game 2, they’ll need to do just that.

In the aforementioned KSL piece, Andy Larsen also pointed out that not only were the Thunder able to capitalize on offensive rebounds, but they turned several of their defensive rebounds into successful transition opportunities. In other words, while my impression while watching the game that the Jazz were getting “killed on the boards” wasn’t technically accurate, it was accurate in the aspect that the Thunder made nearly every rebound work towards their benefit in a big way.

Sure, any rebound is a good thing, but when you’re generating easy points off of said rebound – be it offensive or defensive – it suddenly becomes a much more beneficial stat.

Therefore, although it will certainly be easier said than done, the Jazz need to aim to not only “win the battle of the boards” in terms of sheer rebounding quantity, but also aim to eliminate all second chance opportunities as well as prevent the Thunder from pushing the pace after missed shots.

Out-rebounding the Thunder would be a great step in the right direction, but if that’s all Utah does, it simply won’t be enough.

Next: Utah Jazz: Thabo Sefolosha will be missed in series vs. OKC

As I mentioned the day after Utah’s Game 1 loss, while the defeat was discouraging, it wasn’t all doom and gloom. The Jazz put up a better fight than much of the second half scoreboard indicated, and with a few minor tweaks here and there, they should be much better off in Game 2.

And those “minor tweaks” most certainly include each aspect I’ve mentioned here – improved defense from Royce O’Neale, better defense from Ricky Rubio and the elimination of as many second chance points as possible.

Game 2 tips off on Wednesday at 6:00 PM MT at Chesapeake Energy Arena and on NBA TV.

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