Why the Utah Jazz were swept by the Golden State Warriors

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Oct 5, 2016; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Utah Jazz guard George Hill (3) and forward Gordon Hayward (20) talk mid court during the first half of the game against the Phoenix Suns at Talking Stick Resort Arena. The Utah Jazz defeated the Phoenix Suns 104-99. Mandatory Credit: Jennifer Stewart-USA TODAY Sports /

George Hill’s injury

The Jazz had been afflicted by injury all year, but no one player has been hamstrung more than George Hill. Having missed 33 games in the regular season with a variety of ailments, it was maybe no surprise that Hill found himself out of commission again in the playoffs, this time with a re-aggravated toe injury.

Missing Games 2, 3, and 4, Hill left the point guard duties to the trio of Shelvin Mack, Raul Neto, and Dante Exum, none of which possess Hill’s defensive abilities or his role running the offense.

Utah Jazz /

Utah Jazz

The Jazz went to Mack as the stand-in starter for the three games they were without Hill, playing him 30, 37, and 24 minutes respectively. Considering he appeared in just 12 minutes per game during the regular season, this was a bigger responsibility than Mack was used to.

He’d often have to force shots or drives as the shot clock wound down, being that he was one of the few Jazz on the floor with a penchant for dribble penetration. When the offense was functioning well, it was usually running through Gordon Hayward, resulting in Mack having just 11 assists to his eight turnovers as a starter.

The talent gap between Mack and Neto or Exum isn’t nearly as big as the drop-off from Hill to Mack, but it was still a noticeable one.

Neto appeared in extended fashion in both Game 2 and Game 4, but tended to blend into the background rather than take charge, taking just four shots over those games.

Exum also played only two minutes in Game 3, but his most notable performance was actually in the final game of the series, in which he scored 15 points on mostly drives to the hoop.

Without Hill’s defense, Warriors point guard Stephen Curry was able to go for 23, 23, and 30 points, catching fire over the last quarter of Game 3 to give the Warriors the win.

There will be a lot of decisions to be made at point guard for the Jazz this offseason, and how they played without their current starter will likely have a big impact on how Jazz general manager Dennis Lindsey proceeds.