The Triple Team: Three Thoughts on Jazz vs. Sixers Summer League Game 1

(AP Photo/David Becker)

1. The Jazz took this game seriously: Burke/Exum/Hood/Thomas/Gobert started the game.

Utah has seven players with an NBA contract on this year’s summer league roster, and tonight the Jazz started 5 of those 7 in what is probably their best possible lineup. Meanwhile, the Sixers held out both Nerlens Noel and K.J. McDaniels ¹. Indeed, they never gave any time to Nick Covington, Chris Roberts, or Jason Washburn.

Instead, the core youth group got the minutes, and largely shined in their time. Each of the starting lineup above played over 25 minutes in a 40 minute game, Ian Clark had 21 minutes. Most notable was Dante Exum, who made talking heads from around the nation explode with glee at each beautiful drive or pass.² Trey Burke played relatively well, setting his teammates up for success.  Malcolm Thomas impressed with his game around the basket, he ended up being the Jazz’s leading scorer. Rudy Gobert, while doing poorly at any part of the game that features the word “foul”, impressed by blocking shots and showing offensive skills around the basket (he was the only Jazzman to shoot over 50%). And Rodney Hood, even though he missed nearly all of his shots, shooting 1-10 from 3, still managed to show off developing secondary skills, a trait that will be incredibly helpful as he strives to become more than just a shooter.

And as the game went down to the wire, the thousands of Jazz fans who traveled to Las Vegas took the game seriously too: Defense chants rang out in the Jazz’s final meaningful defensive possession, and the crowd lustily booed the incorrect block call called against their team. All in all, it felt a lot like a meaningful game for the youth of the Jazz.

2. Despite the positives, the Jazz had a horrific shooting night.

It may have been first game nerves, or infamiliarity with a new arena, or simply bad luck. But the Jazz went just 3-30 from three during the game in a contest in which 4 makes could have sufficed to get Utah the win. Everyone struggled: we know Hood, Murphy, Thomas, and Clark are good NBA 3 point shooters (and the others are at least capable), but those 4 made just 1-16 from three.

That being said, no one was concerned about the results. Coach Quin Snyder said he was actually pleased with the shots the Jazz were getting, they just didn’t go in for whatever reason. Trey Burke felt the same. Rodney Hood seemed more upset about the shooting performance, probably logically after missing 9 threes on the night, and kept returning to that as the overarching theme in his performance, even when I asked him about his excellent rebounding.

The good news is that it’s summer league: the actual results matter very little. Far more important is the process and execution that the Jazz display, and Snyder and company will be happy with their squad if they’re able to get that many open three point looks during the season itself. After all, a 10% performance like tonight’s is bound to be improved upon.

3. The Jazz are the new darlings of the NBA blogosphere.

Okay, they might not be everybody’s favorite league pass team. But there was legitimate excitement amongst “blogger row” for what Utah was building, for the first time in recent memory. The biggest crush of the night was definitely on Dante Exum, who drew rave reviews despite a 4-10 FG, 3 assist performance in 27 minutes. Ethan Strauss, for example:

Exum looks like the future

— Ethan Strauss (@SherwoodStrauss) July 13, 2014

If I had to guess (on very little information in a tweet that can be favorited to my later detriment), Exum’s the best player in this draft

— Ethan Strauss (@SherwoodStrauss) July 13, 2014

But the love didn’t stop there. Media also love Rudy Gobert, the Jazz’s lanky center, and his length, hustle, and passion during the game, especially in the 2nd and 3rd quarters. Rodney Hood impressed despite missing jump shots. Even Malcolm Thomas got some love from one prominent blogger, who called him “my favorite player”. It’s an encouraging sign for the franchise, who would benefit greatly from a larger fanbase, both locally and nationally. This week’s open practice showed that the local fans are on board, maybe the Jazz will attract some new fans from around the world this year as well.