Jazz Come Up Short in Conley’s Emotional Return

Mike Conley got a hero’s welcome, but not the win. (Joe Murphy via nba.com/grizzlies)

Friday night was a special one for Mike Conley. After 12 great seasons in Memphis, he finally had the opportunity to return to the city, court and fans that he knew so well. It is difficult to see a player being booed upon returning to a previous team that they had played for. Luckily that wasn’t the case for Conley. When his name was announced fans cheered the same way they had for the decade upon hearing his name. The emotions were high for this veteran point guard.

The bad news?

The Jazz were unable to pull out the victory. In a back-and-forth final quarter, Memphis held on to win, 107-106

There were two very important takeaways from this game:

First, Utah’s bench needs to improve.

Ingles hasn’t been the same guy that Jazz fans grew to love so much. He only attempted four shots on Friday, finishing with a disappointing five points in 18 minutes. It was a rough night for Jazz role players altogether: starter Royce O’Neale and the four reserves who saw action shot a combined 6-of-21 for 19 points. The most disappointing stat of all? Tony Bradley finished with a plus-minus ration of -11.

What does this all mean? Donovan Mitchell, Rudy Gobert, Mike Conley and Bojan Bogdanovic can only do so much. Without much contribution from the bench the responsibility falls all on the starters. It is going to be difficult to win games against elite teams like the Lakers, Clippers and Rockets down the stretch if Utah’s bench is unable to make a contribution. As the season continues on and the starters become more fatigued, the bench will only become increasingly important. The Jazz need some role players to step up and be consistent in helping this team achieve its high potential.

The second big takeaway from the 1-point loss: the Jazz finally got the short end of the stick in close game endings.

Six out of their nine previous games have been decided by five points or fewer, and five of those six were within one possession. Before coming into this game, the Jazz were fortunate enough to be winning most of those games. They had one four out of the previous five within five points but were not able to capitalize down the stretch.

The game had been back and forth after the Jazz clawed their way back at the beginning of the third quarter. Gobert made a clutch free throw with 53 seconds remaining in the game, bringing the Jazz within one point. On the ensuing possession the young Ja Morant, who had a fantastic game, missed a 3-point attempt.

In search of late buckets, the Jazz put the ball in the hands of their most consistent scorer. Mitchell missed a 20-foot step-back jumper. On the other end, Rudy made a fantastic block to give the Jazz control of the ball with only 2.8 seconds remaining. On the final play, the Grizzlies’ defense ruined the Jazz’s inbounds play, but Mitchell was able to catch and turn around in order to attempt a three. He was stripped before he had the chance, but complained that Solomon Hill had made contact with his right arm while reaching from behind. No call. Ball game. Although fans may be frustrated at the refs, there is a more overarching theme.

The Jazz need to learn how to close out close game situations. That is what championship caliber teams do. The Jazz are fortunate enough to have won a large majority of these close games but must find ways to make big plays down the stretch, so it doesn’t always come down to the last possession, or a no-call by the referees.

Lowlight?

The missed call was the biggest disappointment from last night’s game, but a close second came when a referee caused a front-row fan to lose her wine, which spilled all over the FedEx Forum court.

Homecoming slump

The emotions were high, but the shooting percentage was low for Utah guard Mike Conley. He shot only 5-19 from the field, barely above 25 percent.

In his post-game interview, Conley went on to talk about the “surreal” experience of returning to Memphis.

“I couldn’t even look in the crowd without seeing somebody waving or seeing somebody I knew, and everyone of those people triggered a memory,” however he went on to say, “as it became a tighter and tighter game, I just started locking-in and playing and competing.”

When asked how encouraged about his team at this point of the season, he responded, “Very encouraged, we have stuck together through a lot of tight games like this, but we are learning a lot from it… We could be something scary when it comes down to it.”

Stat-line of the game

Rudy Gobert finished with a monster 23 points, 17 rebounds (seven offensive), and 5 blocks. He also shot 82 percent from the field.

Up next

The Jazz return home as they look to continue to stay unbeaten in Vivint Smart Home Arena. They face the young Timberwolves in a Monday night game on the 18 of November. Jazz fans hope that Conley is right, and that as the team continues to play together, they can become better and better.