Utah Jazz Need To Start Adopting Winning Mentality
Last season the Utah Jazz began their year with a 1-9 record through their first 10 games.
That same Jazz team lost eight straight games and were terrible to watch. This year the Jazz have made improvements and have started the season with a 4-6 record through their first 10 games.
A lot of people want to bask in the fact that the Jazz have made a slight improvements with their record but truth be told, a 4-6 record isn’t much better. Call me picky or demanding but since when is having a losing record acceptable?
In fact, why are the Jazz not getting held to the standard that we know they can play at? There are four players in their starting lineup that are younger than 25 and all of them are averaging double-digit points.
While one of their starters averages 9.7 points and will average double figures later in the season, potentially giving the Jazz five players younger than 25 averaging double-digit points.
What other team in the NBA can say they have that type of continuity in their lineup?
Don’t get me wrong, we need to enjoy the fact that the Jazz are starting to become a better basketball team, that’s a wonderful accomplishment. The thrills we’ve seen from this season get people (like myself) excited for the future. But how long is the future?
Should we wait two more years, three more years, four more years until the Jazz become good?
More from Hoops Habit
- The 5 most dominant NBA players who never won a championship
- 7 Players the Miami Heat might replace Herro with by the trade deadline
- Meet Cooper Flagg: The best American prospect since LeBron James
- Are the Miami Heat laying the groundwork for their next super team?
- Sophomore Jump: 5 second-year NBA players bound to breakout
The answer is we shouldn’t.
We should never become content with short-term mediocrity for long-term future success, no winning franchise gets built like that. Even though the Jazz have made an improvement from last season to now it doesn’t mean they should get satisfied.
Why should the Jazz ever get satisfied with just being good enough, this organization is a proud franchise.
They have accomplished a lot during their time in the NBA including having the fifth-highest winning percentage in league history, having a few Hall of Fame inductees, and having multiple appearances in the NBA Finals.
Don’t let anyone fool you, this team isn’t rebuilding. They are nowhere close to the situation of the Philadelphia 76ers, New York Knicks, Orlando Magic, or Los Angeles Lakers. Unlike the rosters mentioned above, this Jazz team potentially has two legitimate all-stars on its roster in Derrick Favors and Gordon Hayward.
Also unlike those other teams mentioned, the Jazz have a good enough team to sensibly compete for a playoff spot (more on that later).
Its been said that to have a winners mentality that teams need to have grace under pressure. This is an attribute that the Jazz have had great success with. This year the Jazz have played with poise (for the most part) in most of their games when the game is winding down. Some of their biggest shots (dagger shots, not game winners) this season include:
- Trey Burke making a 24-foot 3-pointer against the New York Knicks with three minutes remaining in the fourth.
- Trevor Booker making a 3-pointer against the Cleveland Cavaliers on the right-wing with three minutes in the fourth.
- Derrick Favors making a layup inside of the paint against the Cavaliers with 2:22 remaining in the fourth.
- Gordon Hayward making his favorite right-wing mid-range jumper with 32 seconds left in the fourth.
To put it simply, the Jazz have gotten and made quality dagger shots during the times they have needed to. Making these shots are demoralizing for any opponent and winning teams thrive making these shots when they attempt to close teams out.
However, it’s also been said that to have a winners mentality a team has to learn from it’s mistakes. With that being said to compete for a playoff spot in the Western Conference the Jazz can’t allow games to slip through their hands. At times because of their youth the Jazz have let games leave their fingertips because of bad shot selection.
Just look at this shot chart against the Atlanta Hawks. The Jazz were up by eight points with five minutes to go and managed to let a lead squander because of bad shots.
Out of the all the shots that got taken in the fourth quarter only six of them got attempted in the paint. While only one shot came inside of the paint with less than five minutes remaining.
To change this the Jazz need their best players to touch the ball more late in the game. Hayward took one shot in the final minutes and Favors had none against the Hawks. Enes Kanter and Alec Burks shot 3-pointers that weren’t bad shots, they just were the shots that shouldn’t have gotten taken with three minutes in the game.
They needed a lot more paint attempts.
Compare the Hawks shot chart with the shot chart against the Knicks and see the difference of paint attempts (most of them came with less than five minutes to go).
Thankfully this Jazz team has shown that they can learn from their mistakes, which is a very encouraging sign.
In the last two minutes of the game against the Knicks, the Jazz put the basketball in the hands of their best player, Gordon Hayward. On two possessions Hayward made excellent decisions with the basketball including finding Trey Burke in the corner twice, and Alec Burks at the rim for a layup (missed attempt, still a good shot).
This time instead of giving up a lead in the waining minutes of the game, the Jazz played good defense late to win. Their defense was the reason they could hold on to a lead and were not playing catchup late in the game as the Knicks were forced to doing.
After his one-handed running 3-pointer in Atlanta, Trey Burke took his time and in two seconds made the Knicks taste defeat with this awesome game-winning shot.
Trey Burke Game winner http://t.co/K0eIY9ZYap
— Hoops (@HoopMixOnly) November 15, 2014
The Jazz need to start taking advantage of the opportunity that they have been given.
It is a down year in the Northwest division. The Denver Nuggets are in turmoil and are getting ready to start a mutiny against their Bud Kilmer Coach Brian Shaw like in Varsity Blues. The Oklahoma City Thunder are virtually not making the playoffs (or they shouldn’t).
While the Minnesota Timberwolves weren’t expected to do anything this year since they’re rebuilding.
The Jazz are slowly getting better and are starting to understand how to close games out. This winning mentality they are developing is changing the culture quick in Utah. How about we lift our expectations a bit, so losses against the Indiana Pacers and other losing teams get upon as disappointing losses, not OK defeats.
Let’s not baby this team. They’re mature enough and good enough to expect better from. Keep winning Jazz and getting better, we are all enjoying seeing you become great.