SALT LAKE CITY — Three thoughts on the Utah Jazz's 96-85 loss to the Houston Rockets from KSL.com's Jazz beat writer, Andy Larsen.

1. Turnovers ruin a winnable game for the Jazz

The Rockets came into Utah tired after playing the Denver Nuggets last night, and with only nine healthy men available. Clint Capela, Ryan Anderson, and Eric Gordon were all out for Houston, along with Brandan Wright.

And early in the game, it looked like the Jazz had the winning formula. Up 15 with four and a half minutes to go in the second quarter, the Jazz were frustrating the Rockets with terrific defense and smart offense, and getting shots to go down as well.

But that's when some ugly play started. The Rockets finished the first half on a 10-0 run, a stretch of four minutes that included six turnovers. That cut the Jazz lead to five at halftime.

But they weren't done. Joe Ingles tries a bounce pass here, but let's be very clear: the risk of this pass way, way exceeds the reward:

Tonight's Triple Team videos! First: Jazz turnovers. The Jazz frequently liked to pass the ball directly to the Rockets. Here's Ingles doing it: pic.twitter.com/F2hay5Jm5l — Andy Larsen (@andyblarsen) February 27, 2018

Or here Mitchell (who had eight turnovers) tells everyone to calm down, and [then proceeds](https://twitter.com/andyblarsen/status/968373278359412737) to throw a no look pass directly in the hands of two Rockets:

Here's Mitchell doing it pic.twitter.com/jkTqlESRrD — Andy Larsen (@andyblarsen) February 27, 2018

Royce O'Neale here has Favors with a mismatch, but the helpside defender is sneaking over to try to steal the pass. After calmly assessing the situation, O'Neale [throws it](https://twitter.com/andyblarsen/status/968373363839328256) directly to Luc Mbah a Moute.

Here's O'Neale doing it: pic.twitter.com/XVbFKmZVsl — Andy Larsen (@andyblarsen) February 27, 2018

"Some of the turnovers, there isn't any explanation. Just don't throw the pass, because there's a guy there," a frustrated Quin Snyder said after the game. "You can't throw the ball to the other team."

Then, Snyder said something interesting.

"We just have to be mentally tougher. ... I don't think this is a fixable thing as much as it is a maturation of a team. When something doesn't go our way, whether it's a call we don't like or someone makes a mistake or we miss a shot, if you let them continue to carry on, then you aren't getting back on defense. Then you're not spaced the right way because your focus is on something that is over. It's over."

That was also the explanation by ESPN's Amin Elhassan:

By the metrics, this Jazz team isn't particularly young. But with rookies Mitchell and O'Neale combining for 11 turnovers, you see how the mistakes could be made. Veteran guys like Ingles, Ricky Rubio, and Alec Burks (who combined for eight turnovers) though, should know better.

2. Jazz again strong defensively

While the Jazz's turnovers gave them no chance to win, the defense was actually really great throughout. There are a number of different stats that show that, but maybe No. 1 is this: the Rockets hit fewer than 10 threes for the first time in 55 games, an NBA record-long streak.

They did some terrific individual and team defense. I'll give the first shoutout to O'Neale, as what he did defensively against James Harden here is pretty incredible:

That's a shame because the Jazz played terrific defense. Like here, O'Neale does everything great against James Harden: pic.twitter.com/FGSIxZHZUi — Andy Larsen (@andyblarsen) February 27, 2018

As always, the first thing to worry about when defending Harden is not fouling him. But O'Neale manages to do that, slithers above the screen while staying in front, doesn't get beat by any of Harden's isolation moves and contests the shot without fouling. It's pretty brilliant.

He wasn't the only one. Rubio, Ingles and even sometimes Mitchell did a nice job defending Chris Paul, limiting him to 15 points on 5-of-13 shooting and only six assists.

Finally, Rudy Gobert made himself into a presence in the paint. This fourth quarter possession, where Rubio plays solid defense against Harden, then Gobert successfully defends three different layup attempts, shows the level of energy that the Jazz played this game at on the defensive end.

And finally, here's the Jazz doing both. Playing great defense then turning the ball over stupidly then playing great defense pic.twitter.com/F4DKH5eo6q — Andy Larsen (@andyblarsen) February 27, 2018

That's what was so disappointing about the repeated turnovers: The Jazz's defense was working incredibly hard to keep an all-time offensive team (averaging a 116 offensive rating) to a 101 offensive rating for the game. And yes, the Rockets didn't have the role players mentioned above, all of whom are very important to their attack. But Harden and Paul alone are enough to compose a top-10 offense, and the Jazz stifled it effectively.

3. Houston playing small late

Another chess match occurred at the end of the contest, as Rockets coach Mike D'Antoni, without his best big man in Capela, chose to end the game with a small lineup of Paul, Harden, Joe Johnson, Trevor Ariza, and Mbah a Moute at center. Harden guarded Gobert on one end, meanwhile, Gobert guarded Mbah a Moute when the Rockets were on offense.

The lineup worked, stretching a six point Houston lead to the 11-point margin the game finished with. And Mbah a Moute was a big part of stretching the game out, with eight points in just over two minutes.

"I thought we could guard their bigs with James (Johnson) and Joe (Johnson). They're so strong. And if we could put all shooters and spread the floor, I thought we'd have a chance," D'Antoni explained.

Snyder, likewise, was pretty clear about his decision making process.

"Honestly, Rudy's a pretty good player. You can do two things: you can play guys that we play, that's been the cornerstone of what we're doing, that's the anchor of our defense, or you can chase a matchup by going small. I decided to play a guy that's been the best defender on our team and one of the best defenders in the league."

To be clear: I think playing Gobert is absolutely the right move. Gobert is one of those guys who can be responsible for a 10-0 run all by himself, and when you're down in a game with only a few minutes left, you need him on the floor. And the Jazz had to like Mbah a Moute taking possessions away from the Rockets’ best players, even though it worked for Houston this time. The Jazz picked their poison correctly, but the poison still killed them. So it goes.

Meanwhile, it's a bold decision by the D'Antoni, but one I really like. I think most coaches, nursing a lead in the fourth quarter, would go the opposite direction: playing big, making it hard for the Jazz to score. The Rockets went small, making it easier for the offense.

By the way, the Rockets have a real case for the best team in the league, and they don't have a ton of holes. With the signings of Gerald Green and Johnson, they have good depth, too. I fully expect them to take Golden State to at least a long series in this year's Western Conference Finals.

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