A surge is possible, but this isn’t same team (or schedule) as last year
Last year, the Utah Jazz defied the odds in the most mind-blowing way possible. Despite falling to 19-28 in late January and finding themselves well out of the playoff picture, they bounced back immensely to finish the year on a 29-6 run that allowed them to earn the fifth seed in the West.
By so doing, many thought they could continue that ascension this season. Instead, they’ve appeared to revert back to square one as they’ve gotten off to yet another slow start.
In fact, perhaps ‘square one’ is being too kind. This Jazz team seems to have gone backwards.
The team just isn’t performing as we hoped they would this summer on an individual or collective level. I’ve already touched on the play of Rubio and Mitchell, but they’re not the only ones. Two of last year’s bright spots – Joe Ingles and Royce O’Neale – just haven’t been the same players.
Ingles’ shooting figures are down significantly from last season across the board while his turnovers are up. Meanwhile, O’Neale is shooting better than a season ago, but his defense – the main reason he earned a spot in the rotation – just hasn’t been as strong. Consider that Utah’s offensive, defensive and net ratings are all worse than a year ago as well, and it’s pretty easy to see that this just isn’t the same team that went on that monumental run.
Sure, some of that has to do with the tough schedule which eases up significantly in the latter half of the year. However, it’s also important to remember that, not only was that a historical and hard-to-replicate run, but it’s also a new season with new circumstances.
The Western Conference is much more daunting than it was a year ago, so even teams that one might have considered fodder going into the year are much tougher than they look. Seeds 1-14 are legit in the West and even the Phoenix Suns have been playing better of late!
Not to mention, teams like the LA Clippers and Denver Nuggets, who many would have thought would be below the Jazz in the standings this season, are looking exceptional, meaning the “easy” upcoming schedule may not be all that navigable after all. Even teams like the Dallas Mavericks and Sacramento Kings, who some thought would be easy foes, have been dangerous this year. Heck, the Anthony Davis-led New Orleans Pelicans are second to last in the West right now!
In other words, a late season run won’t be as easy not only because the Jazz just don’t look as good as a season ago, but because their opposition is much fiercer. A surge is still certainly possible, but it’s a cold hard fact that Jazz fans shouldn’t just expect a cakewalk in the latter half of the year.
In all honesty, I still feel good about Utah’s playoff chances. The easier schedule will help and Quin Snyder has consistently had better teams in the latter half of the year. However, the illustrious projections from this summer are likely out of the question, if not all but crushed by this point.
Still, even though Utah Jazz fans have been hit with some difficult truths up to this point, the team could still very well turn things around to enough of a degree that they could catch fire come playoff time and make some noise. Considering how dismal things have looked so far, that’s about as much as we can hope for at this time.