The Utah Jazz dropped to 20-21 on the season after falling to one of the East’s best in the Milwaukee Bucks, but the real loss was an injury to Ricky Rubio.
Monday night could have been a great one for the Utah Jazz. Playing a squad that may well end up representing the Eastern Conference in the 2019 NBA Finals, Donovan Mitchell and his crew hung tough through three quarters against the Milwaukee Bucks at Fiserv Forum.
In the end, though, a litany of 50/50 plays went the wrong way, Mitchell’s shots suddenly stopped falling late and MVP candidate Giannis Antetokounmpo pulled ahead in his battle on the court with Rudy Gobert. Simply put, the Jazz ran out of gas in a 114-102 loss to the Bucks.
The result stung a bit to be sure, however, the real loss came during the first quarter of play when Ricky Rubio came up lame after a lay-up attempt. It was a non-contact injury, but clearly something went wrong for Utah’s starting point-man. He exited the game right away and angrily slapped a table on his way to the Jazz locker room.
Now, the fear is that Rubio has seriously injured his hamstring. He’ll get an MRI on Tuesday, and the whole of Jazz Nation will undoubtedly be waiting with bated breath for the results.
It was a hamstring injury that forced Rubio to miss the entirety of his team’s second-round playoff series with the Houston Rockets last spring. If he’s out for an extended time once again, the Jazz will have a hard time sorting out their point guard position in his absence.
Dante Exum, who would be more than ready to take up the mantle in Rubio’s absence under normal circumstances, suffered an ankle injury during the Jazz’s win over the Detroit Pistons on Saturday. The former No. 5 overall pick is expected to miss multiple weeks himself with the injury.
That leaves Raul Neto as the only healthy floor general on the roster. Neto acquitted himself quite well against the Bucks, putting up 10 points, hitting two triples and adding six boards and five assists in 29 minutes of play.
Still, it’s hard to survive in the Association with your third-string guy running the show.
Unfortunately, the point guard spot isn’t the only area the Jazz are banged-up, either. Thabo Sefolosha has a hamstring injury of his own and will also undergo an MRI on Tuesday. Meanwhile, rookie Grayson Allen has an ankle ailment.
When it rains it pours.
It took 41 games, but the Jazz have officially been beset by injuries once again.
On the bright side, 12 of their next 15 games are at home. That said, what once looked like a golden opportunity to really climb up the West table could become a battle for survival.