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SALT LAKE CITY — There was sadness on Thursday for the Utah Jazz.
Yes, the result was expected — by pundits, by fans, and, to some extent, even by the team — but that didn't make the finality of the moment any easier to bear. Oklahoma City beat the Utah Jazz 114-98 on Thursday night to officially eliminate the Jazz from postseason contention.
"This game, in some ways, is kind of a microcosm of our season," a relatively somber Jazz coach Will Hardy said after the game.
What did he mean by that? The score, alone, showed a blowout and looked like it wasn't a competitive game. That wasn't entirely accurate, though. Kris Dunn and Kelly Olynyk both flirted with triple-doubles to keep the Jazz close up until the latter stages of the fourth quarter.
Just like Utah's now 36-44 record doesn't truly represent the season they had, either.
Utah's hot start to the season changed the narrative for a time. The Jazz, who were expected to be a bottom feeder this season, proved to be more fun and talented than anyone would have guessed.
That same scrappy spirit that propelled them to the top of the standings for a short time persisted even after the front office gutted the roster and injuries made it so Utah was forced to rely on heavy minutes from 10-day contract signees.
The team remained competitive, but the wins just stopped coming. Utah has won just twice in the last 10 games; and thus ended the team's run of six straight postseason appearances.
"It's a hard moment to know that you're out," Hardy said. "But I don't think that our team shouldn't walk out of here or think about this season in any other way than with their head up and shoulders pulled back and with a lot of pride."
Hardy said his team represented themselves in a way that fits with the Jazz culture and its fan base.
"The toughness and the togetherness, and laying it on the line every night never quitting," he added. "We've kind of leaned into our imperfection as a group. … So, yeah, it's not a good feeling, because you know all the hard work has gone in and you know how much they care and you see it on their faces — like, they're hurting."
After last year's offseason, any thought of the playoffs was a distant dream. Utah traded four starters away, including cornerstones Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert, and beckoned what many expected to be a long rebuild.
Instead, Lauri Markkanen and Walker Kessler emerged as potential franchise pillars, and Hardy proved to be a home run hire. Even after the Jazz traded away four more rotation players at the deadline, the Jazz coach kept his team in the playoff conversation to the very end.
At least, until the injury report proved to be too long. The Jazz were without Markkanen, Kessler, Jordan Clarkson, Collin Sexton, Talen Horton-Tucker, and Rudy Gay on Thursday in a do-or-die game for their postseason hopes.
It was a valiant effort from a team and coach whose front office was actively working against their success. The front office, understandably, was thinking of the future; they wanted to know who their younger players could potentially be, and if a high draft pick came too, well, even better.
This season's result will ultimately be better for the future, but that didn't mean much to the players on Thursday.
"Obviously, it's gonna be a tough day. Tomorrow may be a little grim," Olynyk said.
