Jazz Regain Identity Against Cavaliers

CLEVELAND, Ohio – Two things have plagued the Utah Jazz over the last month and a half of basketball. Small lineups that can spread the Jazz defense with all five players on the floor, and high scoring wings that can attack the Jazz perimeter defense. 

The Cleveland Cavaliers don’t have much going for them this season, but they can put together a lineup like those that gave caused the Jazz trouble in recent weeks.

When Kevin Love plays center, the Cavaliers can spread the floor with five perimeter players. Meanwhile, second-year guard Collin Sexton leads the team in scoring, averaging 20 points per game, while rookie wing Kevin Porter Jr. appears to have a promising future as a go-to perimeter scorer. 

Can't quit now! 😤#BETHEFIGHT pic.twitter.com/UswWEtWayo

— Cleveland Cavaliers (@cavs) March 3, 2020

When paired, it’s a dangerous combination for an inconsistent Jazz team that has struggled on both sides of the ball since returning from the All-Star break. 

Against the Cavaliers, looking simply at the box score, the Jazz may have once again been in for a concerning loss. 

Sexton finished with 32 points on an efficient 11-18 shooting, including 4-6 from the three-point line. Love, playing the role of floor spacer added 22 points, including six made threes on 11 attempts, and the Jazz turned the ball over 15 times, leading to 18 fastbreak points for the Cavaliers.

So why were the Jazz able to beat the Cavaliers after losing four straight games with a similarly poor defensive formula?

The simple answer is shooting.

How did @JordanClarksons make this?#MACU3 | @MountainAmerica pic.twitter.com/8j3DnzQeSY

— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) March 3, 2020

The Jazz knocked down 20-41 shots from downtown, including a bounce-back performance from Bojan Bogdanovic who had struggled since returning from the All-Star break. The Croatian forward had gone cold over the previous five games, shooting just 36 percent from the floor and 31 percent from the three-point line. 

Against the Cavaliers, Bogdanovic scored a team-high 28 points, connecting on 10-19 shots from the floor and 5-10 from three, his best three-point shooting performance for the Jazz since February 1. But Bogdanovic wasn’t the only Jazz player who seemed to recapture his identity against the Cavaliers.

Rudy Gobert regained his defensive excellence, blocking five shots, his best single-game total since January 25. Gobert added 20 points, a feat he hadn’t accomplished since January 30. 

DPӨY appreciation post 🔒#TakeNote pic.twitter.com/dEapGkua49

— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) March 3, 2020

Royce O’Neale connected on 4-6 three-point attempts., a total he hadn’t reached since December 7. In fact, the guard hadn’t knocked down three three-point shots since December 28 against the Los Angeles Clippers. 

Donovan Mitchell broke his career-best four-game streak of scoring 30 points or more, but grabbed nine rebounds, his best outing on the glass since November 15. 

To complete the Jazz identity reclamation process, Joe Ingles recorded eight assists, Jordan Clarkson scored an efficient 13 points, while Mike Conley added 15 points, handed out six assists and didn’t turn the ball over in an even 30 minutes of game time. 

Though there is still work to do to prevent better teams from replicating the small ball formula, the Jazz showed that they can get victories by trusting their identity and finding open shooters, regardless of the other team’s approach.

The Importance of Luck and Culture 

Both the Jazz and the Cavaliers have lost franchise pieces in the last five years with Gordon Hayward leaving Utah for the Boston Celtics, and LeBron James leaving Cleveland for the Los Angeles Lakers. 

While there’s no arguing that James is a significantly bigger loss than Hayward, the quickness with which the Jazz rebuilt their roster is admirable and has saved an incredible amount of heartache since that drawn-out July 4 decision. By the time Hayward left, the Jazz already had Mitchell on the roster, ready to pick up where the former Butler star had leaf off, and the Jazz have continued their upward trajectory. 

The Cavaliers, while having some talent in the form of Collin Sexton, Darius Garland, and Michel Porter Jr., simply don’t have their next franchise piece to build around. Finding that player, especially in the immediate absence of the last franchise star is an enormous boost to an organization that keeps the fanbase involved while preventing the winning culture from leaving the team entirely. 

This 𝙎𝙥𝙞𝙙𝙖 flies #TakeNote pic.twitter.com/AY805iY89X

— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) March 3, 2020

Both the New Orleans Pelicans and Memphis Grizzlies lost the best players in their franchises’ histories, but by replacing Anthony Davis with Zion Williamson and Mike Conley with Ja Morant, they’ve been able to retain their culture while accelerating their rebuild. 

The Jazz got lucky to have Mitchell fall to the 13th pick the draft, and then to swindle the Denver Nuggets on draft night with a lopsided trade that landed the Louisville star in their laps. Even in games when Mitchell is slightly less than his usual spectacular self, Jazz fans should recognize everything he has brought to the franchise.