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SALT LAKE CITY: Getting close isn’t good enough for the Utah Jazz.
The Jazz were a play or two away from advancing in the first round of the NBA playoffs earlier this year. But turnovers and missed shots at critical moments cost them against Denver and ultimately led Utah to collapse after taking a 3-1 lead over the Nuggets.
Now the Jazz are determined to write a different story next season.
“We don’t forget that we lost a 3-1 lead,” guard Donovan Mitchell said. “We lost in the first round. No time for that. There is no time for slow starts. We cannot be complacent when we are awake. “
Utah didn’t make a splash with multiple big-name free agent signings or trades like it did a year ago, and decided to leave last season’s roster intact. The Jazz worked to secure central players like Mitchell and Jordan Clarkson with new contracts and also brought back Jazz great man Derrick Favors after spending a season with New Orleans.
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Mitchell’s continued growth as an NBA All-Star can serve as a barometer of how far this team can go. He took his ability to create on offense to a higher level against the Nuggets in the postseason, averaging 36.3 points on 52.9% shooting in seven games. Mitchell scored 24 points per game on 44.9% shooting during the regular season.
Another key is how well veterans like Clarkson, Mike Conley and Bojan Bogdanovic advance as complementary pieces around Mitchell on offense. All three players proved their worth at different times last season.
A sense of urgency permeates everything the Jazz want to do as so many players return who are familiar with what coach Quin Snyder wants to do on offense and defense.
“We want to be a great team,” center Rudy Gobert said. “There are steps we must take. We are improving individually and now collectively every year. Obviously last year it didn’t really translate because we lost in the first round. But we really felt like we could have finished in the Western Conference final. “
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SECOND STINT
Utah’s highest-profile free agent acquisition during a truncated offseason turned out to be a familiar face. Favors returned to the team where he spent 8½ of his first nine seasons.
During his first season with the Jazz, Favors averaged 12.1 points and 7.4 rebounds. Utah traded him to New Orleans in 2019 as a cost-cutting measure so the Jazz could sign Bogdanovic. The favors appeared in 51 games for the Pelicans, averaging 9.0 points and 9.8 rebounds.
He is happy to be back after a year away.
“I wanted to go back,” Favors said. “I wanted to play for Coach Quin. He’s like my favorite coach in the world right now. I love the organization. I love the city. It just felt good. “
GETTING ON THE DEFENSIVE
Utah earned a reputation for being an elite defensive team with Snyder. Gobert won consecutive NBA Defensive Player of the Year honors in 2018 and 2019. As a team, the Jazz have consistently ranked among the best in the league for defensive efficiency.
Until last season.
Defensive struggles became pronounced for Utah as the season progressed. The Jazz struggled to contain shooters on the perimeter and eventually became their downfall in the playoffs. They finished with a defensive rating of 109.9, ranking 13th out of 30 NBA teams. Utah was second overall in the same category in the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons.
“What this group needs to do is continue to focus on defense,” Snyder said. Adapting to each other on defense is real. They can adapt to each other on the offensive side. But at the same time, defensively, we have to do the same. “
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Curing
Bogandovic’s absence at the end of the season after undergoing season-ending wrist surgery for the summer was huge for the Jazz. They missed his outside shots and his offensive versatility in the bubble and could never fill the void.
The forward has returned to action and feels healthy. It offers an encouraging sign for a Utah offense where Bogdanovic emerged as a reliable No. 2 scorer alongside Mitchell last season. Through 63 games, he had a career-high 20.2 points per game while shooting 44.7% from 3-point range.
“This is the first time in my life that I didn’t play for that long,” Bogdanovic said. “Even like pickup games or preseason games or whatever, it was a little weird for me, but I really wanted to play to get that good feeling back. I’m happy to be back. “
