Staff Post: First Half Recap + All-Star

Mitchell, Conley and Gobert will appear together in Sunday’s NBA All-Star game. (David Sherman via espn.com)

With 36 games down and 36 to go, it feels like a good time to look back at the Jazz season so far.

A panel of SCH writers tackled these topics looking back at the first half of the season and looking forward to Sunday’s All-Star game that will feature three Jazz players and the coaching staff.

We’ll have another group piece next week more focused on the second half of the season. For now, enjoy!

Pretend it’s December 22 and I just told you that the Jazz are going to reach the All-Star break with a 27-9 record and a 3-game cushion for the No. 1 spot in the league. What does your December 22 self say in response?

Trevor Gustaveson: I’m not shocked, but man, the Jazz must have been among the luckiest teams in terms of health and safety protocols as well as health. I’m going to attribute this burst of success mostly to Mike Conley Jr. getting more comfortable and Derrick Favors vastly improving the bench minutes. I’m most surprised at the amount of margin for error the Jazz have, as I expected them to be a contender this season. I did not expect them to be dominating like this. But I’ll take it!

Riley Gisseman: “That’s great! Are they still healthy?” Something that’s been a bit overlooked in NBA and Jazz circles is the astounding health going into the second half of the season. With no real injury issues in sight, the Jazz seem to be in prime position to attack the second half of the season and gun for the first seed. I know that 2017 me would be jealous of the team’s spotless injury report.

Jake Lee: “WHAT???!” Honestly, that’s a pretty incredible feat. It makes me so proud to be a loyal Jazz fan, especially since this has been so many years of grinding through bad seasons and bad teams. If you told me that, I would have guessed that (1) Donovan Mitchell continued his meteoric rise after the bubble (this is not necessarily true, but he’s been solid), (2) Favors brought back some toughness and fixed our bench issues (mostly true), and (3) somebody else on the team must have really turned things around (quite a few players actually!). Overall, I’m just so happy for the guys. I’m happy for Quin Snyder. I’m happy for Don. I’m happy for Rudy Gobert and Joe Ingles. They put a lot of work in. It’s fun to see it pay off.

Zarin Ficklin: Is Mitchell a top-5 MVP candidate? Honestly, I thought Utah’s ceiling was directly tied to Donovan’s growth into superstardom — and there still may be truth to that — but the Jazz have found success this season from collective contribution. Last year I often wondered what the Jazz would look like if Mitchell, Conley, Bojan Bogdanovic and others all clicked in during the same game. This season we’ve seen the whole group take a unified step up and the sum is greater than its parts. I certainly didn’t see this coming.

Mark Russell Pereira: I would be happy but skeptical, if only because we have seen prior iterations of Snyder’s Jazz put up a great winning percentage over decently long stretches. The problem in prior years is that such success would be sandwiched between bouts of inexplicably horrible performances where the team just looked out of sorts—more than just missing shots or opponents getting hot. Now, if you showed me the amount of 15+ point blowouts included in those 27 wins, December 22 me might be a little more optimistic.

David J. Smith: I most likely would need your help to be picked up off the ground. Given the tumultuous and bizarre occurrences of the previous year, my most glowing expectation was Utah fighting for homecourt advantage. For it to be where it is now is obviously well beyond this. It seems like each season there is a winning team that makes the right moves, sees the right internal improvement, and has the right chemistry (think Toronto and Milwaukee). Perhaps this is the Jazz’s turn.

What has been the most pleasant surprise from Utah’s first 36 games?

Trevor: This is a tough call between the improved play of Royce O’Neale and the absolute explosion of a year Jordan Clarkson is having. I’m going to give the most pleasant surprise award to O’Neale though. I’ve always been a huge fan of his game, but did not expect him to look so dynamic. He has greatly improved his passing, pass fakes, and he is shooting with confidence. He’s even been running a little bit of pick-and-roll, as well as attempting threes off the dribble and a stepback or two. He hasn’t always been able to shut down elite guards, but he is giving great effort in the post against bigger players that he’s matched up against.

Riley: Ingles might be playing the best basketball of his career. Some people could have predicted Clarkson’s strong season, Conley’s bounce-back year, or Gobert’s re-emergence at the top of the DPOY race — but if you look through the smoke and see that Ingles is averaging a career best points-per-possession, turnover-rate, and true-shooting percentage, you can quickly see the impact he’s had on turning last year’s bench issues around. 

Jake: On the one hand, I’m not surprised Conley has figured it out—it already started to click in the last half of 2019-20. I’m not surprised Gobert and Mitchell have improved. On the other hand, Clarkson has surprised me. He’s just been so solid, averaging 18 ppg. Being the second leading scorer on a team with Conley, Mitchell, and Bogdanovic is already a crazy accomplishment. But more importantly, nearly every time Utah has needed a lift this year, JC has been there. Even after his last stretch of poor shooting, he’s still 37% from three while attempting a whopping NINE threes a game. Oh, and by the way, did you know he’s shooting 96.7% from the FT line? If the season ended today, that’d be good for #2 all time for a single season.

Zarin: There are so many to choose from, and I’m sure the other writers will cover the bigger surprises. I’ll cheat and pick two smaller, but still pleasant surprises. One is Georges Niang’s defense. His shooting numbers are catching up to his norm, but his defense has kept him an important part of the rotation. Improving the 9th rotation spot is a tougher conversation now that Georges is holding is own. Second surprise is Ingles’ lack of aging. I thought he might take a step back this season, especially while locked in as a bench player for the season. Instead, Joe is having a career year. And the Jazz are undefeated when he fills in as a starter.

Mark: The aggression level on early-clock and/or on semi-contested three pointers. It makes for absolutely thrilling basketball (I audibly laugh at some of the attempts this team takes and makes) and it looks like the team is loving the green light. We are such a far cry from watching a wide-open rookie Ingles just standing there with the ball, unsure as to whether he should actually have the audacity to shoot a three.

David: The relentless, dominating offense. Coming into the season, we knew Snyder wanted to take even more advantage of the Jazz’s corps of marksmen. But to be this consistently and ridiculously good? Like record-setting good? That was not expected. Utah’s defense has been characteristically stout. But it feels like two or three times each outing, the offense will go bonkers with a barrage of 3-pointers. Those two or three-minute spells are what has propelled them to blowout after blowout. It happened last season a few times with Mitchell and Clarkson. But this season, these explosions are a team effort (though often led by one or both of this duo).

What concerns you the most about the Jazz at the season’s midway point?

Trevor: Late game play or clutch situations. Snyder has had his moments of brilliance in the past in this area, but if I’m being honest, Snyder is more of a system-based coach. He is more than capable of making adjustments that work well on the fly, but we’ve seen too many instances of extremely poor execution in clutch situations, specifically final plays of the game after timeouts. It’s also difficult to iron those wrinkles out when you’re consistently blowing out opponents and not involved in many late-game situations that require more focus. It would be perfect if the Jazz can get separation on elite teams in a playoff setting so that this worry is out of mind, but they haven’t proven they can do that consistently either.

Riley: Utah’s defense has faltered. Since the first game against Philadelphia, their defensive rating has fallen below league average. That’s not to say that it’s terribly worrisome – they’re still forcing the toughest shots in the league by location over that period (via CTG) – but they’re also fouling more and not rebounding as well defensively. That said, the Jazz still have the second best defense in the league against top 10 offenses, it just feels as though the foot has slipped off of the gas a bit.

Jake: On offense, I’m concerned about their inability to control a game, especially when opposing defenses show ball pressure. They can often get to their counters, but not always. For the most part, Utah is not a big team, nor an athletic team. Gobert struggles to make plays when there’s a man between him and the hoop. Utah often goes cold and Donovan overcommits to isolation, which stalls Utah’s offensive system–which is the crown jewel here. The Jazz can beat the Lakers. The Jazz can beat the Clippers. But it’s going to have to be a group effort. On defense, I’m very concerned about Bogdanovic. Perhaps this is recency bias, but I can’t get the picture out of my head of Tobias Harris completely dominating him in the post to win that game. Of course, the Jazz really just need another wing defender. O’Neale is really good. But unless Snyder gets more comfortable playing two bigs again, this will continue to be a big hole in the Jazz defense.

Zarin: If the Jazz secure the #1 seed they would hope for an easier playoff path. Based on today’s standings, it could be team like the Grizzlies in the first round (tired from the play-in tournament), maybe the Blazers in round two, and then one of the LA teams in the Western Conference Finals (hammered from a matchup with their other LA rival). Instead, the Jazz could finish as the best team in the league, and face the Nuggets, or a team led by Luka, Dame, or Steph. After that one of the LA teams in round two (who could very well stay in the 4/5 bracket at this point), and then another LA team if the Jazz can make it to the Conference Finals. And we haven’t even mentioned the surging Suns, who now have the second best record in the league.

Mark: Health. The Jazz have been inordinately healthy and have avoided the hammer of coronavirus health-and-safety protocols. This is a playoff-built roster: A stellar 1-through-8 (and Niang and Miye Oni are fine contributors) that gets dicey thereafter. In particular, a lengthy Gobert absence could dash any hopes of a 1-seed (or even top-4); I don’t think Favors can play more than 24 minutes per game these days.

Also, regarding the protocols, I think the players and organization should get a ton more credit than they have received for not experiencing any absences. Remember, Gobert and Mitchell aren’t exempt just because they have previously contracted coronavirus. I think the team’s lack of absences on this front is an indicator of the sacrifices the players have made and the genuine bond the team has with each other (i.e., players not needing to go do activities that are restricted under the protocols).

David: The perimeter defense. Contrary to what Doc Rivers may feel (he says he never campaigns…), Gobert is the Defensive Player of the Year frontrunner. As usual, the Stifle Tower erases many mistakes. O’Neale has been the Jazz’s Swiss Army Knife and Conley is still doing Conley things. Still, there have been occasions where Utah’s wings have struggled defensively. In a Western Conference where team boast versatile All-Stars on the perimeter, the Jazz will need to see more focused, dedicated effort. Oni has been a mini revelation, making good things happen nearly every time his number gets called. Perhaps he will be more of a factor moving forward.

What was Utah’s defining/best moment from the first half of the season?

Trevor: I’m going to cheat and give two answers, one defensive moment and one offensive moment. On offense, in the first game of the season vs Portland, when Mitchell ran pick-and-roll with Gobert, threading the needle past Jusuf Nurkic to Gobert for the slam. On defense, there was a play against OKC (another game very early in the season) where George Hill was running pick-and-roll with Al Horford, and Hill pulled up, but instead of shooting, ran a give and go with Horford. Gobert seamlessly switched onto Hill to prevent a layup, and when Hill tried to finish on the other side of the rim, Gobert blocked him.

Riley: Beating Milwaukee in Utah seemed to put a stamp on the best-team-in-the-league status that the Jazz had carried with pride for the first half of the season, and though there were plenty of moments to choose from, the sequence from Bogey’s behind the back pass to Donovan’s one handed fastball to Joe’s hyper-quick release for a corner three feels like the embodiment of this Jazz team. Selfless, connected, and wired-in describes that play as well as the team as a whole.

Jake: For me, when the Jazz beat the Bucks the second time around, I had this realization of how good this team was. Gobert had a masterful performance and set the tone early with a monster dunk over Giannis Antetokounmpo. O’Neale, at 6’4, held the 6-foot 11 reigning MVP and DPOY to two first half points, the same player who had a season high of 47 points in his previous game. Gobert finished with 27 points and 12 rebounds. Ingles tied his career high with 27 points. Mitchell scored 26. Clarkson had 25. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen that many players hit +25. But it was just a joy to watch, and even Antetokounmpo noticed that, commenting after the game: “It just looks fun. When I watch them play, it looks fun, it looks easy, it looks simple.” Giannis also called the Jazz “the best team in the West.” And after this game, I started to believe that.

Zarin: To me, it was in the pre-season, when we saw the Jazz shoot 41, 39, and then 52 3-point shots — each resulted in a blowout win. There was abundant tempering of expectations (after all, two of those were against Phoenix!), but it turned out to be a good approximation of what this new Utah Jazz team could play like. During the 1st of quarter of the 1st regular season game the Jazz focused on midrange shots and started slow. Then they reverted to the barrage of 3s and beat the Blazers by 20 points. This Jazz team was real.

Mark: The January 8 13-point win at a full-strength Milwaukee Bucks squad. Utah downed a then-record 25 threes, controlled the game throughout, and was the first win that kicked off an 11-game win streak and the 25-5 run they’re on now. It showed Utah could handily beat a title contender, perfectly exhibited their new offensive philosophy, and Clarkson dropped DJ Augustin into the afterlife with a nasty crossover that wasn’t even his best move of the year.

David: There are so many moments, but for me, it is the close-knit nature of this team that sticks out. Yes, they are winning. But, more importantly, it is the way they are winning. They take the court with a togetherness that is special to watch. Theirs is a special brand of basketball and it is starting to garner national attention.

What are you most looking forward to as two Jazz players — wait, no three! — and the coaching staff participate in All-Star Sunday?

Trevor: I want to see how well Snyder’s team can execute in comparison to a regular All-Star team. Does he have fun with it and stay relaxed, or does he run some complicated sets and embarrass the other team? I just can’t imagine Snyder not taking a game seriously, but it should be a fun time all around. Hopefully everyone stays safe and Mitchell or Conley sets a new record for the three point contest. Also, with Gobert and Mitchell on different teams, my money is on Gobert blocking Mitchell at some point.

Riley: I’m excited for the entirety of the All-Star break, but especially Donovan competing in the three-point contest. If he were to win – and he’s been one of the best catch-and-shoot players in the league since his rookie year – he would be the first player in NBA history to win both a three-point contest as well as a dunk contest. Often, you find stats like this and say “that’s some pretty neat territory to be in the same class as Michael Jordan, Lebron James, and Wilt Chamberlain”, but in this case he’d be the first in a class of his own.

Jake: I would love to see Mitchell win the three-point contest and become the first player to win both the 3-point and dunk competitions. It wouldn’t surprise me if he did either. He’s an incredible catch-and-shoot three-point shooter, so maybe that translates. But if I had to put money on this, I’d probably go with Steph Curry or Zach Lavine. I also can’t wait to watch Gobert try to set another screen again in the All-Star Game and block some shots. It’s pure comedy to see the other players react to him going all-out. And I don’t blame him. If you’re there, you might as well try.

Zarin: Gobert was one of the most effective players in last year’s All-Star game, scoring 21 points and playing great defense during an intense stretch of the game. But now I’m most curious how the Jazz players react (if at all) to the disrespect from LeBron. We’ve seen the Jazz with a target on their back — and that comes from both being a small market and the top team in the league. How will they hold themselves on the biggest stage so far?

Mark: First, a bit of a soapbox: After years and years of the actual All-Star Game being boring, not worth watching, and actually taking a backseat to the 3-point and dunk contests in most years, the NBA is finally delivering a fantastic product with the drafting of teams and the Elam Ending. Fan interest seems to be growing, and Adam Silver risks throwing it in the garbage by slapping together the 2021 All-Star Game. The coronavirus pandemic is absolutely still raging, and All-Star Game parties are inexplicably, but predictably, cropping up all over Atlanta. Players openly stated not wanting to play, in part because of the pandemic and also because the emotionally and physically taxing 2020 season just ended. There is a very good chance we get a crappy, uncompetitive All-Star Game that torpedoes the goodwill the league built over the past two years. All-Star Weekend should have never been put on.

I am most looking forward to Snyder unable to contain himself from actually coaching, Gobert attempting (making?) a three, and Instagram posts from the rest of the team — where is Clarkson vacationing? How is the Ingles family doing?

David: I am excited for Gobert to record an All-Star game record 14 blocked shots. In seriousness, the last few days have taken just a bit of the excitement away from what was promising to be a great weekend for the franchise. It should still be fun, with Snyder getting rewarded for a stellar coaching job. Undoubtedly, Gobert, Mitchell and Conley will be just fine. They will perform well. But I assume a chip will be growing that will help moving into the second half of the season. And that will be where the fun lies.