Utah Jazz: Intensity will be key to fifth straight victory

Intensity

There’s no doubt the Utah Jazz have taken a step back this year as far as intensity and focus go. For me the common theme in both players and coaches interviews is a laid back one, that they’re planning on peaking at the right time and hopefully playing in June.

When the Jazz were really struggling back in December, and rattling off unconvincing wins, Quin Snyder would usually blow it off and note that their win-loss record didn’t reflect a slow start to the season compared to previous years.

When the team had their four game skid in early February, nobody sounded too worried. The responses to the media were typical cliche, “We need to improve that to be a good team”. It was the really bad four game skid after the All-Star break that (hopefully) sent this team a wake up call.

All year long this team has been able to talk the talk, but can they walk the walk? They’ve done it for short stretches at a time, but can they do it consistently, and when it matters most?

They key for tonight’s game will be bringing an intensity and focus from the opening tip to the final buzzer. If they do that, it could be a lopsided twenty point lead by halftime and a relatively easy victory.

If they fail to do that, this game could be really similar to the New York Knicks game last Wednesday. Allowing your opponent, especially a lesser opponent, to go on large runs and erase double digit leads is unacceptable.

My hope is that Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert get some decent rest in this game without having to play and scrap for their usual 30+ minutes.