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SALT LAKE CITY — The Jazz aren't a great team, but without their defensive captain Derrick Favors they are 0-9 and often look lost and overmatched on defense.
Favors is the man in the middle for the Jazz's defense. The last line of defense and the captain who calls the shots is the role that he is best at, and he does it well. When he isn't out there the defense, no matter who is out there seems a bit slow to react.
The Jazz lost Favors in the game before the All-Star break against the Philadelphia 76ers when he re-injured his hip. They were able to win that game, but since the break Favors has missed three straight and lost all of them.
They were three games where the opposing teams were missing their starting centers. The Brooklyn Nets have been without Brook Lopez for a while, the Portland Trailblazers didn't have LaMarcus Aldridge, and the Minnesota Timberwolves didn't have their big center Nikola Pekovic.
That didn't stop all of their replacements from going off. The Nets had Andray Blatche, their backup center, who ended up playing 31 minutes and scored 25 points, more than double his season average. The Blazers had Robin Lopez start, and he scored 12 points to go with 18 rebounds.
Saturday night was the cream of the crop when Kevin Love slid to center from power forward and put up his first triple-double with 37 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists. Love dominated inside and out, using his power on smaller opponents, such as Jeremy Evans, and his superior shooting and agility against bigger defenders, like Enes Kanter.
Favors brings a different ability in his defense and to the Jazz's defense.
“What Derrick brings to the table is what this team really misses when he's not here,” said Marvin Williams, who also checked Love Saturday night. “He's a great one-on-one defender. He's also a great help-side defender. When our perimeter guys have been broken down, he's been there to save the day.”
Favors has a defensive rating of 105, which measures how many points per 100 possessions a team gives up. Against the Timberwolves, the Jazz had a defensive rating of 126. In this three game span, the Jazz had a defensive rating of 113.6.
The Jazz have the pieces to be successful, but over time their defensive plans fall apart. Where does blame or responsibility fall to make adjustments? Is it on the coaches or the players to step up and change?
“It's on everybody, I'm not playing the game,” coach Tyrone Corbin said. “We put guys in position and the guys have to make plays. We have guys out there.”
The scheme has been pretty consistent. Corbin has talked throughout the season about players making plays when they are in place. Sometimes they just can't do that.
“The coaching staff has done a great job putting together a game plan for us,” Williams said. “I think we're trying to do our best to go out there and execute it, but obviously throughout the course of the game you are going to have breakdowns, and I feel like that's where Derrick has come and saved the day for us. When he's not back there it becomes real difficult for us.”
Favors is a defensive-minded player, so when the time comes to make a play on the defensive end, his instincts take over and he can make the play. On the other hand, Kanter is an offensive-minded player whose instincts aren't focused on defense.
While that isn't the key to playing defense, it seems to be what separates Favors from other players on the team and in the league. He has a feeling on how to play defense and does it well.
Favors won't be out for an extended period, but he's missed nine games this year and never played a full 82 games. If the Jazz are to find a winning, defensive culture, they will need to find some of it without their defensive star, and then when he is in the game their defense can be great.
