The lopsided blowout by the Dallas Mavericks proves the Utah Jazz are a mess this season

The Utah Jazz got dismantled by the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday night in a game so lopsided that the starters didn't play much past halftime. The Mavs defeated the Jazz by 50, exploiting their lackluster defense to the tune of 147-97. The Jazz had no answer for the Mavericks all night on defense and at times the team didn't even look like it was trying on defense.

Arguably the only fight the Jazz showed was in the form of Kris Dunn, when he was caught jabbering with Mavericks star Luka Doncic after an easy score. Outside of that one play, it's hard to say for sure that the Jazz showed up with any fight in them.

The Jazz's starting five had no effort on defense, and the bench only did so much better. It wasn't just the defense, either, because the offense continued to sputter as well. The offense only had the success it had thanks to Ochai Agbaji. Had it not been for Agbaji hitting 21 points on the night, the Jazz may have lost by 60 or 70.

The Jazz are a mess, and while the team did lack Lauri Markkanen, Jordan Clarkson, and Kelly Olynyk for the game, the team's "best" defensive players were on the court. Walker Kessler, Agbaji, and Dunn are all among the team's most heralded or hyped-up defensive players, and they still couldn't slow down Doncic and the Mavericks.

The Mavs aren't some juggernaut either, as they have just a 12-8 record on the season, meaning they're very beatable.

So for the Jazz to get their butts handed to them as dominantly as they did, it has us wondering if there isn't something deeper going on with this Jazz club? Have players already started giving up? And if so, why are they still getting minutes?

The Jazz have to make some dramatic changes, and waiting until January may not be a possibility. Sure, the offense will get better when a few key players return but the defense has been truly bad all year and nothing short of a roster overhaul is going to fix that.