The J-Notes
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Utah Jazz: Reviewing the FIBA performances of current Jazzmen + Rubio

By Jared Woodcox

BEIJING, CHINA - SEPTEMBER 14: Donovan Mitchell #5 of the USA Men's National Team against Team Poland during the 2019 FIBA World Cup Classification 7-8 at the Cadillac Arena on September 14, 2019 in Beijing, China. Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images)
BEIJING, CHINA - SEPTEMBER 14: Donovan Mitchell #5 of the USA Men's National Team against Team Poland during the 2019 FIBA World Cup Classification 7-8 at the Cadillac Arena on September 14, 2019 in Beijing, China. Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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BEIJING, CHINA – SEPTEMBER 15: Rudy Gobert #27 of Team France and Paul Lacombe #90 of Team France celebrate after the games against the Australian Boomers during the Third Place Game of the 2019 FIBA World Cup at the Cadillac Arena on September 15, 2019 in Beijing, China. 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. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images)
BEIJING, CHINA – SEPTEMBER 15: Rudy Gobert #27 of Team France and Paul Lacombe #90 of Team France celebrate after the games against the Australian Boomers during the Third Place Game of the 2019 FIBA World Cup at the Cadillac Arena on September 15, 2019 in Beijing, China. 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. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images) /

With the 2019 FIBA World Cup concluded, let’s take a look at how Utah Jazz players Donovan Mitchell, Rudy Gobert and Joe Ingles fared, as well as former Jazzman Ricky Rubio.

The FIBA World Cup came to a conclusion on Sunday with both the bronze medal and championship games taking place. While the most unfortunate aspect of the tournament was that Utah Jazz star Donovan Mitchell and his Team USA squad weren’t in action on the final day of play, there was still a lot for Jazz fans to enjoy in the last two contests.

The reason for that was that two current and one former Jazzman hit the court on Sunday. Rudy Gobert and France suited up to take on Joe Ingles and Australia in a battle for third place whereas recent Jazz point guard Ricky Rubio and his Spain squad took on Argentina in the championship.

When all was said and done, France managed to avenge an earlier tournament loss to the Aussies by winning in a low-scoring affair 67-59 to claim the bronze medal. The Australian squad got off to a fast start with a 30-21 lead at the half, but France battled back and managed a 25-13 advantage in the fourth quarter to arise victorious.

Having played a physically and emotionally draining semi-final game against Spain in the previous round, it’s entirely possible that Australia simply ran out of steam, which is exactly what it looked like on the court. Joe Ingles had a good final game with 17 points on 7-of-11 shooting, but ultimately Australia still finished in fourth place.

Meanwhile, Ricky Rubio was prolific against Argentina as he led Spain to an easy championship win by a score of 95-75. Rubio exploded for a team-high 20 points while shooting 6-of-11 from the field and adding seven rebounds and three assists. Rubio’s prolific play throughout the tournament earned him the prestigious FIBA World Cup Tournament MVP Award.

The game was really never in question as Spain outscored Argentina in every quarter, taking the lead 23-14 after one, extending it to a 12-point lead at half, then running away with it in the second half.  Despite having upset both Serbia and France, Argentina’s luck ran out in a big, bad way at the worst possible time in the championship contest.

Now, with the FIBA World Cup concluded and the start of NBA training camps less than two weeks away, it’s time to finally turn our attention towards the long-awaited 2019-20 season. The Utah Jazz have massive expectations, and although the games are quite different, we gained some valuable insight about some of their players based on their FIBA performances.

As such, let’s recap what we’ve seen out of them throughout the last few weeks of FIBA play and what we can expect for them in the 2019-20 season.

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