21-22 NBA regular season, Jazz VS Magic. In this game, the Jazz's core players were in poor condition. In the end, the team lost to their opponents 100:107 and suffered a 2-game losing streak. The Jazz lost two consecutive games and still lost to the Magic, which is at the bottom of the Eastern Conference. This made many fans start to gloat, thinking that their strength is just that, but is this really the case?
After back-to-back battles, the Jazz were exhausted
As the first in the Western Conference last season, the Utah Jazz were by no means as miserable as fans thought. After suffering two consecutive losses, the team still ranked second in the Western Conference with 7 wins and 3 losses. , and this loss to the Magic is actually excusable. After defeating the Kings on November 3, the Jazz began their three-game trip in the Eastern Conference. Although they won the first game against the powerful Hawks in the Eastern Conference, they ushered in the Miami Heat in the second game. As we all know, Heat is an extremely defensive team. Their defensive efficiency ranks second in the league this season (before the game). In the match against the Heat, the Jazz consumed a lot of energy. In the middle of the fourth quarter, the team even fell behind by 19 points, but they never gave up and almost completed the reversal.
Just after playing against the Heat, the Jazz immediately flew to Orlando to play the Magic back-to-back. The result was that the players' collective energy was poor and they had no shooting touch. Among them, Mitchell made 8 of 224, Ingles made 2 of 9, and Bo Gdanovic made 4 of 213, Clarkson made 2 of 13, and Pascal made 1 of 5. The five of them made a total of 17 of 64 shots, and the shooting rate was only 26.5%. If they can win with such a shooting rate, it will be hell. .
The Jazz, who are both good at offense and defense,
As the team ranked first in the Western Conference last season, the Jazz continue to maintain their core lineup this season and play an efficient offensive and defensive performance. Data shows: This season the Jazz's offensive efficiency is 114.3, ranking second in the league, second only to the Philadelphia 76ers . At the same time, their defensive efficiency is also 103.3, ranking sixth in the league.
Just like Jazz head coach Snyder said, the team is built around Gobert . This may sound harsh to many fans, but it is actually the case. In the regular season, without any targeting, Gobert, the three-time DPOY winner, is the key to the Jazz on both offense and defense. Needless to say on the defensive end, with a height of 216cm, a wingspan of 235cm, and good running and jumping abilities, Gobert has become the team's inside frame protector. Data shows: Facing Gobert's defense, the opponent's shooting percentage dropped by 8.2 percentage points. , especially within 6 feet of the basket, when the attacker faced Gobert, the shooting rate was only 43.2%, which was a full 16.1 percentage points lower than usual.
On the offensive end, although Gobert lacks outside shooting, he is extremely efficient in finishing inside. This season, he averaged 15.2 points, 16.1 rebounds, 1.1 assists, 1 steal, and 1.9 blocks per game, with a shooting percentage of 74.6%, including average rebounds and field goal percentage per game. They are all first in the league. During the game, the Jazz often let Gobert catch the ball during the offense and then let opponents double-team him. Although Gobert lacks the ability to hold the ball, his efficiency in the interior is too high, coupled with his ability to harvest rebounds, making him a great threat to the basket. Last year's playoffs Clippers VS Jazz, the Clippers used the ultimate space lineup. This lineup was specifically targeted at Gobert, turning the latter's advantage into a disadvantage. But that was the playoffs, and the opponent still had the ultimate The Clippers have space + the league's top forward group. If this were the regular season, opponents would not specifically target them and it would be difficult to find a lineup like the Clippers.
Characteristics of the Jazz
The Jazz are not a very athletic team. The two main players Bogdanovic and Ingles are white. Conley is 34 years old and often injured, Whiteside De and Gobert are traditional centers and move quite slowly. The team averaged only 9.5 fast break points per game this season, ranking 26th in the league, and 19.9 assists, ranking second to last in the league. The reason why the team can still have the league's second offensive efficiency is mainly because of the following three points:
First of all, the Jazz have the league's top rebounding ability. They averaged 48.7 rebounds per game this season, ranking second in the league. With the rebound, the team can counterattack or attack twice, which greatly improves the offensive efficiency.Secondly, the Jazz have excellent ability to rush the frame and win free throws. This season, they averaged 24.1 free throws per game and made 19.6, ranking first in the league in both statistics. Finally, the Jazz are the league's top shooting team. The team averages 42.5 three-pointers per game, ranking second in the league. Mitchell, Bojan, Conley, Clarkson and Ingles all average three-pointers per game. More than 5 times.
The Jazz are a team with strong combat effectiveness, which can be seen in the game against the Heat, but they also have their own problems, such as players frequently suffering injuries and the team's sixth man Clarkson's ups and downs. In addition, the two big insiders are slow to move and are easily targeted in the playoffs.
