The Jazz have a perimeter defense problem
This is not a new issue, but Utah simply plays too many bad defenders. They rely an unhealthy amount on Rudy Gobert.
If you saw any of it, you can probably picture last season’s second round playoff series between the LA Clippers and the Utah Jazz. The Clippers played five shooters, mostly getting rid of centers in order to space the floor, at the expense of size. The decision had one goal in mind: drag Rudy Gobert out of the paint and put the maximum emphasis on Utah’s other four defenders.
It was tactical brilliance from Ty Lue. Gobert had to stand on the perimeter, honoring somebody’s three-point shot, while the Clippers redirected their offense away from him. The Jazz have produced an above-average defense for years on the pure strength of Gobert, funneling all offense to him at the rim and letting him eat it up. It never mattered that no one could keep players in front of them.
Against the Clippers, that mattered. Gobert was torn between two minds: moving to the rim to cover for his teammates’ mistakes, or staying on the corner shooter. He never had an easy time with that decision. The Clippers toasted all of the Jazz’s perimeter defenders. The guy Gobert usually guarded, Terance Mann, caught fire in the clinching Game 6, hitting seven threes and scoring 39 points.
The Jazz have not addressed this problem. They lack capable wing defenders, and it is looking like a debilitating weakness. This problem returned to the forefront in an overtime win last night against the moribund Houston Rockets. The Jazz gave up an 18-point lead and won a 132-127 shootout. Giving up 127 points to the Rockets is never a good sign.
Houston is a tough matchup for the Jazz. Their center, Christian Wood, is a talented shooter, so in order to keep Gobert in the paint as much as possible, the Jazz had him guard the less threatening forward Kenyon Martin Jr., who mostly stood in the corner. Martin scored 20 points on 8-14 shooting (4-8 from three). It was a smart decision by Rockets coach Stephen Silas to play Martin heavy minutes, as he proved well-equipped to punish Gobert for ranging off of him.
The Rockets, like the Clippers, would redirect their offense away from Gobert anyway:
Royce O’Neale (the Jazz’s only other above-average defender) doesn’t help from the corner as Wood gets a ferocious dunk. Gobert is helpless on the near side.
Here’s another Wood play. He faces no resistance on the perimeter and drives right to the hoop, dishing it off to David Nwaba:
There’s just … no defense. Rudy Gay can’t keep Wood in front of him. Hassan Whiteside (Gobert’s backup) has to cover for him, which leaves Whiteside’s man wide open.
Perimeter defense is getting more and more important in the NBA. With so much perimeter creation and spacing, teams need players who can make things difficult for ball-handlers. Rim protection is still inherently the most valuable part of defense, as shots at the rim are always the best shots, but the Jazz prove that it is not everything.
In the playoffs, much of a team’s strategy comes down to attacking defensive weaknesses. The Jazz have too many of those. Sixth man Jordan Clarkson, who plays a lot of minutes, is a major liability. He makes copious mistakes both on the ball and off. Donovan Mitchell, a small guard carrying a major offensive load, isn’t providing much resistance. Bojan Bogdanovic looks even slower this season. O’Neale is supposed to save them and guard the best players, but he stands just 6’4. The best players tend to be taller.
Utah disproves the idea that players on a contending team can turn it on defensively when it matters. It’s not that simple.
The Jazz give up 105.0 points per 100 possessions with Gobert on the court this year, and 110.4 when he sits. They are excessively reliant on him. It is not a healthy strategy. I don’t see much different with this Utah team compared to the ones that have an extensive history of playoff failure.
What else is happening in the NBA?
The latest on the Harden-Embiid Sixers: Still really good! They are now 3-0 together after a win last night over the Knicks. James Harden scored 26 points and Joel Embiid scored 27.
The Heat and Bucks had a very interesting and intense game. The Bucks stormed back late and won 120-119 on a last-second Jrue Holiday layup. There is a lot to take away from this game as we look toward a potential postseason matchup. One observation: the Bucks’ defense struggled again for most of the game, but Miami’s half-court offense went ice cold when the starters came back on in the fourth quarter. The Heat’s spacing concerns when all three of Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo, and PJ Tucker play together might be their most prominent issue.
The Suns didn’t have Devin Booker or Chris Paul and still put 120 points in a 30-point blowout of the Trail Blazers.
Good news on the Zion Williamson front. His fractured right foot is “showing signs of improved bone healing,” per ESPN’s Andrew Lopez. It’s nice to finally hear good news, but he remains out for the foreseeable future.
Kevin Durant returns tonight for the Nets against the Heat.