Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
SALT LAKE CITY — Whichever the spin, the most obvious being injuries, to date the Utah Jazz do not remotely resemble a championship contender.
With the playoffs three weeks away, the Jazz are fading and could drop to sixth or seventh in the Western Conference standings. Stark contrast to last season when they earned homecourt advantage throughout the playoffs by virtue of securing the NBA's best regular-season record.
Not that finishing atop the standings did the Jazz much good in the playoffs, during which they were bounced by the Los Angeles Clippers in the second round. It turns out all the good vibes deserved over the course of the season amounted to nothing more than false hopes.
All this season, knowing playoff failure or success often define each individual season for good teams, the Jazz basically have brushed off the inevitable pitfalls spread over the course of the marathon 82-game season. The goal, as coach Quin Snyder and his players have stated numerous times the past few months, is to jell as the team approached the final weeks of the season.
Game No. 70 was the magical point in which Snyder wanted the Jazz to start peaking. The literal game 70 played out to near perfection, as the Jazz blasted the watered-down Clippers without injured All-Stars Kawhi Leonard and Paul George.
For one night before the joyous home crowd, the Jazz made their coach look like a soothsayer. Too bad one game does not make a hot streak.
The subsequent six-game road trip was a disaster. After beating the hapless New York Knicks in Madison Square Garden, the Jazz lapsed into a five-game losing streak that included a non-competitive performance in a 28-point loss to the Boston Celtics.
All sympathizers, namely some in the hardcore fan base, are quick to point out injuries as the primary reason as to why the Jazz have hit the untimely skid. No doubt losing the services of sharpshooter Bojan Bogdanovic and defensive anchor Rudy Gobert have severely impacted the team's chances of beating good teams.
But injuries don't only compromise the Jazz nor is it the cause for blowing a 25-point lead Tuesday's loss to the Clippers. The bug has derailed every Western Conference championship contender, some worse than others.
As countless coaches across many sports have articulated over the years, nobody cares about your problems — or in this case, injuries. Taking it a step further, plenty are happy you have competitive issues.
A long summer turned into a long season as Jazz failed to grow from playoff scars
The pain felt last summer was supposed to be the catalyst to a new level for the Utah Jazz. Now, nearly a full-season later, it feels like a weight they can't escape.The Phoenix Suns, who have already clinched homecourt advantage throughout the playoffs, lost MVP candidate Chris Paul for 15 games with a wrist injury. Instead of wilting, as some NBA experts speculated, the Suns went 11-4 without the 12-time All-Star point guard.
Moving down the Western Conference standings, in order, the upstart Memphis Grizzlies are 18-2 without budding superstar Ja Morant this season. Last weekend, the Grizzlies dispatched the reigning NBA champion Milwaukee Bucks, who were without starting point guard Jrue Holiday.
Injuries to three-time NBA champions Draymond Green, Klay Thompson and Step Curry have dogged the Golden State Warriors the entire season. Yet, the Warriors almost assuredly will finish ahead of the Jazz in the standings.
Then there are the Denver Nuggets, who lost second-leading scorer Jamal Murray to a devastating knee injury last season and have been without starting forward Michael Porter Jr. for much of this season. Reigning league MVP Nikola Jokic has turned in another spectacular season, more than keeping the Nuggets afloat in the rugged Western Conference.
All their issues haven't stopped the Nuggets from posting a 23-16 road record, the best in franchise history. With two road games remaining, the Jazz are a disappointing 19-20 away from home.
But all is not lost for the Jazz, provided the starting lineup is intact for the playoffs. They can take comfort in knowing their record this season is 27-11 when the regular starters play.
