The Utah Jazz are trying to lose but they don't need to look like they're trying to lose. In what could only be described as "loser's mentality" the Utah Jazz not only bricked away a chance to beat the Chicago Bulls, but they arguably choked it away. In a game where they were missing Lauri Markkanen and Keyonte George, the Jazz kept it close. They kept it so close they could've won the game.
It was right there, but man, sometimes egos get in the way. With officially 9.1 seconds left on the clock, Collin Sexton fouled DeMar DeRozan to stop the action and send him to the line. Bulls player Torrey Craig took offense to this and started jawing at Sexton, which prompted the Jazz players to crowd the Bulls bench. This prompted the Bulls' coaches to start separating the players before something happened.
Collins, thinking it's a good idea to walk up to the Bulls' bench as coaches are trying to keep the sides apart, gets stopped by Bulls assistant coach Chris Flemming. Flemming put his arm out to stop Collins from advancing further, into space he has no business being in. Collins responded by grabbing Flemming and then trying to choke him.
An image and description that has perfectly summed up his time in Salt Lake City. Collins should've been ejected, and worse yet, the man took no responsibility for literally assaulting a coach, whose only crime is trying to stop a fight from happening.
It's clear Collins wanted a fight, which is ironic, as he hasn't put up much of one on the court all season.
Collins' actions aside, that's not where the embarrassment ends. Down by three and with 40 seconds left on the clock, the Utah Jazz did not take on a shot from inside the perimeter. Instead, Jordan Clarkson jacked up an ill-advised three with 43.1 seconds left on the clock. The Jazz were down just 117-114 and had a second possession all but coming their way.
The shot missed, and the Jazz would not take another shot for over 30 seconds.
After some free throws, and Collins trying out for the UFC, the Jazz were only down by two, with the score 119-117. So do the Jazz do the realistic thing; attack the basket, with Sexton or Clarkson and draw the foul to tie up the game at worst, or take the lead by one at best with an and-one?
No, instead Clarkson jacks up a 29-foot shot that misses its mark, and when the Jazz, somehow, get the ball back, Sexton responds with another three-point shot, with more than two seconds left on the clock to drive to the lane and takes a better, more efficient shot.
The Jazz have fallen apart since the trades. The games are ugly, the effort at times isn't there, and the decision-making is NBA2K levels of bad.