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SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Jazz roster is missing several important pieces.
The Jazz have five players who are currently out of the lineup for injuries, including three starters. Early Monday, before a game against the Indiana Pacers, Trey Burke was ruled out with strep throat.
In attempts to bolster the lineup, the organization signed former Jazzman Paul Millsap’s little brother, Elijah Millsap, to improve the depth. Millsap, who signed a 10-day contract with the team, was averaging 20.6 points a game for the Bakersfield Jam.
Jazz coach Quin Snyder said Millsap would play immediately, and the NBA first-timer responded by contributing 18 minutes and two points. He also contributed four assists and five rebounds.
To also make up for Burke’s illness, Snyder countered by starting an all-Australian backcourt, featuring Dante Exum and Joe Ingles.
"We're going to have to continue to get efforts from everybody," Jazz coach Quin Snyder said.
In spite of the forced fixes, nothing could help the Jazz Monday as they fell to the Indiana Pacers 105-101.
Missing so many starters, there are several issues that concern Snyder. One of the issues has been a lack of communication between the players on the court — a problem that was only magnified with Burke out of the lineup.
Whether it comes through a lack of continuity or a youthful lack of confidence, Snyder said it’s an issue that has to improve.
“We do not communicate the way that I would like,” he said. “The times we do, it’s a huge benefit. It’s something that absolutely, for us to continue to improve, has to improve. There’s so many different ways that it can happen.”
Communication was a problem for Utah in the first quarter as the Jazz were outscored 31-16 after making 6-of-19 shots. In contrast, Indiana made 12-of-19.
However, the Jazz had their moments late in the fourth quarter, trailing 100-96 with 21 seconds left in the game. Utah cut it to 101-100 with eight seconds left, but former Jazzman C.J. Miles iced the game at the line with two free throws.
Snyder said the team’s intensity on defense improved throughout the game, after a poor first quarter.
“I thought we just weren’t quite as urgent getting to shooters,” said Snyder, referring to Indiana’s 53.8 shooting percentage from 3-point range. “Give them credit, they made some, and I just thought we gave them a little confidence early. We were on shooters, but we weren’t as aggressive in our contest.”
In his first career start, Exum finished with 13 points on 5-of-14 shooting, and said he appreciated the encouragement he got from Snyder throughout the game.
“The thing I kept hearing was to keep shooting,” he said. “When you start off shooting 0-for-5, that’s the first thing you want to hear. I was just trying to find my game. It was nice that he had the confidence in me.”
With so many players missing from the lineup, Snyder is using the entire roster to stay fresh. Lesser-used players like Jeremy Evans and Steve Novak saw action Monday.
Going forward, Burke will travel on the upcoming four-game road trip, and will be available to play as soon as he is deemed healthy by training staff. In the meantime, with a game at Chicago on Wednesday, Snyder said he will have to continue to juggle lineups.
“We’re going to have to continue to get efforts from everybody,” he said. “The road is hard, and the teams that we play are really, really good. I don’t know if we’re going to get guys back, or when, so this is pretty much the group we’ve got.”
