The Utah Jazz and 3 other teams who aren’t performing as expected

Nov 2, 2023; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen (23) dunks against the Orlando Magic in the third quarter at the Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 2, 2023; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen (23) dunks against the Orlando Magic in the third quarter at the Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Utah have not been playing as expected to start the season, but they aren’t the only ones.

The Utah Jazz are not off to a good start to this season. They’re 2-4 through six and the season is on the verge of getting away from them already, and we’re not even through one full month of play yet. The team is only through six games, and a two-game winning streak brings the team back from the brink, but they have to actually win the next two games.

With each loss, the team continues to defy early season projections, bringing us one step closer to a full rebuild, instead of the reloading process we all thought the Jazz were engaging in. They’re not the only team who aren’t following the script.

So we’re looking at the Jazz and some other teams who are not performing as expected.

The Utah Jazz (2-4)

We thought the Jazz could struggle on defense, just considering who they have there. We did not, however, expect them to struggle on offense as well. They are 13th in the league in points per game, but they’re 17th in field goal percentage. And while as a team they’re doing well from three (10th), most of that is due to Lauri Markkanen. Markkanen is the only player who is shooting over 40% from three while taking more than 2 full shots per game from beyond the arc.

And with the well-documented early season struggles of Jordan Clarkson shooting the ball and the volume of shots he’s taking, it’s not exactly looking to get any better.