How have the Jazz managed to surprise the NBA world through the first week of action?
Better than expected
After trading away their star players and being predicted to be one of the worst teams in the association, the Utah Jazz have been one of the league’s best teams through the first week of action. With a 3-1 record, the Jazz have been surprising everyone around the country with their play thus far.
Fans have gone from thinking this is a rebuilding team and shooting for the top spot in next year’s draft, to now thinking that this team may have a chance at another playoff run. How has this team changed the narrative that was surrounding them all offseason, to now being in the top four of the Western Conference on October 26?
Inspired play
It is still very early in this NBA season, but Utah has been playing with a passion so far for new coach Will Hardy and it’s obvious they are trying to win and be competitive.
Even though that should be the goal of every team, sometimes selfish desires can get in the way. This Jazz team plays with heart and you can tell in the way that they play that they have been well coached. With how young this team is and the way that they are playing currently, the sky’s the limit with all of the assets that they have acquired from the trades made over the offseason.
Although the future seems to be looking bright for Utah, the current team is making a name for themselves currently. Let’s go through a brief rundown on each game and how they’ve been able to get off to a hot start this season.
October 19 – vs. Denver
The Jazz started their season at Vivint Arena against the Nuggets, who were a playoff team last season. Utah surprised everyone with the way they played, leading throughout most of the game, in a 123-102 win. This was a statement victory for this young team, letting the rest of the league know that they were not to be taken lightly. The thing that stands out about this team, is that there is rarely one player that clearly outshines the rest. They may not have the “star” players or the most talented squad, but they play very well together.
There were seven Utah players that scored in double figures against the Nuggets, led by Colin Sexton’s 20 points and Lauri Markkanen’s 17. This team clearly wants to share the ball and get the best opportunity to score each time down and there hasn’t been anyone playing selfishly. When a team agrees to play together, it can be really fun to watch and that was the case with this game. The team had a total of 27 assists on the night and they got a big win to start their season off.
October 21 – @ Minnesota
The next test for Utah was going on the road to play the Minnesota Timberwolves at the Target Center. This game was a really big one for the Jazz, not only to build off their first game success but also because of the trade these teams made during the offseason.
Utah sent their all-star caliber center Rudy Gobert to the Timberwolves in exchange for five players and four draft picks with an additional pick swap. The relationship between Jazz fans and Gobert was very positive and many fans still cheer him on even while he’s wearing another team’s jersey. Gobert had a solid game for himself in this one, but it was not enough as Utah beat Minnesota in overtime 132-126.
This was another game where the team was playing great basketball, with six players reaching double figures in scoring. Jordan Clarkson’s 29 points led the way, while Markkanen added 24. This was another really impressive game overall for the Jazz as they had continued to spread the ball around and play great team basketball. They had 39 assists throughout the game, with Mike Conley tallying 11. This was a close, hard-fought battle that Utah won while once again proving the doubters wrong.
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October 23 – @ New Orleans
After the close overtime win in Minnesota, the Jazz were off to New Orleans to play against the 2-0 Pelicans. This New Orleans team is very similar to Utah in a lot of ways; they are young and hungry to win games. They may not have as much skill as some of the other teams in the NBA but they are a team that will put up a fight each time they step onto the court.
This game was another tough test for this young Jazz squad, but they got another overtime victory on the road. This one was a nail-biter as Utah won 122-121, with Kelly Olynyk hitting a layup to take the lead with just 3.1 seconds remaining.
The Jazz proved that they could beat tough teams on the road and that they don’t flinch under pressure. Lauri Markkanen was the star player for Utah against the Pelicans, continuing his hot start by putting up a season-high 31 points. He also went 11-of-11 from the free throw line which proved to be big since this game came down to a one-point differential.
Three other players also scored in double figures; Kelly Olynyk had 20, Jordan Clarkson had 18, and Jarred Vanderbilt had 15. The team once again played well together racking up 29 assists on the night, and they rebounded well together with 44 boards collected. This was another great win to add to the surprise start.
October 24 – @ Houston
The excitement from the last three games had Utah fans very thrilled with how their team was playing. They were able to pull out close games on the road and beat playoff-caliber teams.
However, this streak had to come to an end at some point. No team in the NBA will ever go undefeated, so fans knew that the time would come that this team would suffer their first loss of this young season. This loss came on the road against the Houston Rockets. The Rockets are another young and upcoming team that has a lot to prove. They were able to get the best of the Jazz on Monday night, but it was still a close game as the Rockets prevailed 114-108.
Despite the loss, Utah still played a great overall team game, and this has been the way that they have succeeded so far this year. When so many other teams rely on star players to carry the load, the Jazz are playing as one unit and proving that team basketball gets wins.
In this game, there were seven players that scored in double figures, led by 17 from Jordan Clarkson. They continued to share the ball well, delivering 23 assists as a team. The downfall in this one for Utah was their fouls and turnovers. The Jazz had 27 fouls on the night, resulting in Houston shooting 32 free throws. They also had 20 total turnovers which can make it difficult to win games, especially playing on the road. Although they lost this game, Utah kept it close and still played pretty well.
Can they keep it up?
Many will question whether this team is really a contender in the Western Conference, although the answer to that question is still undetermined.
They have played very good team basketball so far this season, yes, but do they really have what it takes to keep this up? The NBA season is just getting started and we have a long way to go before we can start thinking about where this team will end up.
However, it appears as though this team is being coached very well. They are playing unselfishly and have been successful because of it. As long as they continue this, they should continue to see success on the court. Just imagine what this team could build with all of the upcoming draft picks that they have acquired and the young pieces currently in uniform. It’s too early to be thinking about that though, as the Jazz will want to take it one game at a time as they build on their hot start.
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