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SALT LAKE CITY — Change isn’t always easy, but life in the NBA features a lot of it.
The Utah Jazz went through a big change Thursday, losing Enes Kanter and Steve Novak in a trade to Oklahoma City. The process includes the Jazz losing two players, while gaining the Thunder’s Grant Jerrett and Kendrick Perkins.
Anytime a player leaves or enters a locker room, it changes the dynamic. Besides holding roles on the court, players play roles in the interpersonal complexion of the team — some as leaders, some as followers, all as contributors.
While Kanter and Novak fulfilled different roles, the remaining members of the Utah Jazz picked up any remaining slack, powering to a 92-76 win over the Portland Trail Blazers.
Utah started slow, trailing 24-18 after the end of the first quarter. However, the Jazz went on an offensive tear in the second half, scoring 53 points. Utah held a 65-59 lead at the end of the third quarter, but went on a 15-0 run to open the fourth quarter. The run included three 3-point shots — part of 10 overall threes for the Jazz.
Jazz coach Quin Snyder said the offensive performance reflected a calmness and maturity.
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“I think we played pure,” he said. “We made some mistakes, but guys played for one another. When you’re unselfish like that, we were trying to make each other better. It felt like to me, on the floor, we played with a purity that was nice to see.”
While the offensive outburst allowed the Jazz to pull away from Portland, the biggest factor in the game was the team’s defense. The Blazers shot just 36.1 percent from the floor and made just 18.2 percent.
Utah forward Gordon Hayward, who led the team with 20 points, said the defensive performance was one of the best of the season.
“You could definitely make an argument (that this was one of the team’s best defensive games),” he said. “All around, one through five, everyone out there on the court (contributed). I think it really transferred to the offensive end — gives you a spark.”
The trade changed many things, but the biggest thing it changed was center Rudy Gobert’s role with the team. Gobert started, and scored four points with seven rebounds. While he got into foul trouble early, teammates lauded his performance.
Gobert said the last week has been a mixture of emotions for him.
“It’s been a crazy week for me,” he said, after holding Portland center LaMarcus Aldridge to 5-of-16 shooting. “First, the All-Star game, then all the trades — it was a very important game for me. The game started pretty slow — two stupid fouls — and I had to come back ready in the second half.”
Besides the win, the story of the day was how Utah will miss its departing players and what role they played within the locker room.
For instance, Steve Novak lightly contributed in Utah on the floor, averaging just 2.2 points a game. However, he developed deep relationships within the organization — a move Jazz coach Quin Snyder lauded.
“Steve was one of the best locker room glue guys that you could ask for,” he said, “particularly for me in trying to put a team together. We’ll miss that. We missed his voice today in practice. What he did was really, really unique.”
If Novak was primarily a locker room contributor, Kanter was a strong contributor on the court. The Turkish center averaged 13.8 points a game and was a starter for much of the season.
"We played pure," said Jazz coach Quin Snyder, referring to the victory over the Portland Trail Blazers.
Snyder said Kanter’s absence changes the on-the-court complexion of the team immediately.
“Enes was a big-minutes guy who had an impact on the game,” he said. “(He impacted) on the offensive glass, we’d throw it to him in the post, so we’ve got to figure out a little bit who we are, and that will be a process.”
The next week will judge exactly how the Jazz adjust to the change. However, if Friday is the only sample, the Jazz will be just fine as they move forward.
Snyder said he believes his team is mature enough to adjust with any changes that come about.
“There’s a period of time, just like in the beginning of the year, where guys are getting to know each other,” he said. “We’ve got a group that’s been really dialed in. … I think all of our guys are mature enough, even though we’re really young, to understand this is part of it.”
