Jazz get crunkstomped in Atlanta, get ready for Carolina
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by CRS-ONE
I was so bothered by the Utah Jazz's loss to the Atlanta Hawks on Monday that I can only write about it now.
The Jazz choked in the fourth quarter, giving the Hawks the win 116-111.
What the hell?
It's not that the Jazz can't score. They can do that at will. They average pretty close to 100 points a night. In this past game Carlos Boozer had 39 points. They had another four players in double digits.
The problem is their defense. Defense isn't played with your hands. It's played by smart positioning and taking charges. It's by getting into passing lanes. It's by smothering your opponent without even touching them.
Bad defense, like the kind that the Jazz used in Atlanta, only leads to free throws. The Hawks wound up shooting 36-50 from the free throw line. Fifty free throws is absurd. They only had 66 field goal opportunities during the game.
The Jazz, on the other hand, lost the game on their own free throw shooting. They were 29-42 on the night.
Shot selection was also a big problem for the Jazz. Deron Williams was 3-12, which is absurd for a player of his calibur. Andrei Kirilenko was a more respectable 5-11 on the night, including 0-3 from three point land. When are the Jazz going to accept that AK isn't a perimeter threat and start running more plays for him where he cuts to the basket?
Tonight the Jazz get to play the Charlotte Bobcats. Charlotte is a pretty awful team, so the Jazz have a great shot at winning this one. Here's some important things for the Jazz in tonight's game:
- Carlos Boozer is a beast in the paint and the Bobcats have no one to stop him.
- Limit the Bobcats' free throw attempts. Play smarter defense.
- Actually make your own free throws.
- Don't choke in the fourth quarter.
- Don't let this become a track meet, seeing who can score more. Play some defense and the Cats will crumble.
