Hornets 96 – Jazz 85

WARRIOR. Millsap was by far the best Jazz player on the court tonight. Unfortunately, his efforts could not overcome Eric Gordon’s white-hot shooting spree in the fourth quarter. Still, the way he played through his injury tonight was the stuff of legends.

Carroll’s energy is problematic for opponents’ offenses and contagious for the Jazz. For every single one of his minutes, Carroll was all-out, pedal-to-the-metal basketball chaos.

No complaints about Al’s offense, but terrible rebounding and nonexistent defense was catastrophic for the Jazz.

Harris shot terribly, single-handedly ruined a number of fastbreaks, and his defense could be called “inconsistent” at best. That said, he was the only Jazz player who was consistently penetrating, and his assists were vital on a night of offensive ineptitude.

A game ago, Gordon Hayward looked like a future All-Star and the face of our franchise. While this performance shouldn’t take away from that one, the Jazz desperately needed him tonight, and he was nowhere to be found.

Derrick Favors was everything anyone could have asked from him. About a month ago, Derrick Favors decided that if he exerted himself on the boards, he had all the tools to dominate the glass. He has done so ever since.

Alec Burks’ almost putback was breathtaking and would have been the highlight of his rookie year. Unfortunately, tonight was a night of “almosts.”