No. 4 – A pair of crippling losses to the Atlanta Hawks
As is the case with so many of the events on this list, hindsight has erased the sting of this particular pair of moments. Nevertheless, that doesn’t change the fact that at the time, both of Utah’s losses to the Atlanta Hawks were absolutely crippling.
The first came on January 22nd; it was just the third game back for Rudy Gobert following his aforementioned mishap in Boston. The Jazz had struggled the entire way through the month of December, but hopes were high that with Rudy Gobert back in action and an easier schedule ahead, Utah could turn things around in January.
That sentiment especially rang true considering Utah would be facing the worst team in the Eastern Conference in the Atlanta Hawks. If the Jazz were to assert themselves as a playoff-calber team, this was a game they could and should win, wasn’t it? Particularly with Rudy Gobert back in action, right?
Unfortunately – wrong.
The Hawks absolutely manhandled and embarrassed the Jazz, defeating them by a score of 104-90 in a game that didn’t even really feel that close. The horrifying loss caused the Jazz to dip all the way down to nine games under .500. A deficit that most felt was insurmountable. It’s no surprise that the calls of #TankNote piled up after this game more than at any other moment.
Of course, we know the story from there. As much as it hurt to see Utah lose that game, they ended up using it as a springboard to rattle off 11 consecutive victories and fight their way right back into the playoff conversation.
But as they looked to battle for playoff positioning, later in the season on March 20th, the Atlanta Hawks stood in their way once again. At the time, the Jazz had clawed their way up to fifth in the Western Conference, but needed a W to remain there. After stringing together nine straight victories, it seemed that earning a 10th win over Atlanta within the friendly confines of Vivint Smart Home Arena to continue to climb up the standings was almost a sure thing.
There was no way the Jazz would drop a second game to the worst team in the Eastern Conference, was there?
Narrator: There was.
That’s right, for the second time in as many contests this past season, the Jazz fell to the Atlanta Hawks, this time on their home court to snap a nine-game winning streak and stumble back down the standings. At the time, it was a crippling blow for Utah’s momentum and a punch to the gut for fans who were beginning to have visions of the three-seed dance around in their head.
These two Atlanta losses didn’t end up being as costly as they seemed at the time, but there’s still no denying the sick feeling both defeats left in the stomachs of Jazz fans everywhere when they occurred.