The Utah Jazz went up 2-0 on the Los Angeles Clippers in their second-round series, only to get smacked around in Games 3 and 4. With the series now tied up at 2-2 and things shifting back to Utah, it's time for Quin Snyder to ride or die with three-time Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert.
Gobert hasn't played more than 36 minutes in a playoff game yet this year. While that was totally fine against the Memphis Grizzlies, Snyder needs to let his defensive superstar loose the rest of the way against the Clippers and possibly beyond.
Compared to other All-Stars, Gobert's minutes are low in the playoffs, as are fellow Jazz star Donovan Mitchell's:
https://twitter.com/JakeRexLee/status/1404685680572174338
It's understandable to limit Mitchell's minutes given his ankle issues, but Gobert needs to play more. He only played 32 minutes in the 118-104 Game 4 loss and was a minus-1. Granted, the big man was in some foul trouble, but the coach needs to have faith in those situations that his DPOY will be smart and keep himself in the game.
Snyder addressed Gobert's minutes after the loss:
Since you all wanted me to, I asked Quin Snyder about Rudy Gobert's minutes: pic.twitter.com/Q65SYRV2la
— Andy Larsen (@andyblarsen) June 15, 2021
There's also the issue of the Clippers' small-ball lineup posing problems, but that can't keep Gobert off the floor. If he's truly the best defensive player in the NBA, the Jazz star should still be effective against smaller lineups, and it would be helpful if he could punish them on the offensive end as well. Unfortunately, that offensive punishment hasn't happened yet in this series for Utah.
The Jazz have been good, though, with Gobert on the court in this series. His on-court defensive rating in the series is just over 111, per NBA.com, but Utah's defensive rating as a whole is nearly 125. That's because the Derrick Favors minutes have been an absolute disaster when he subs in for Gobert. The Jazz allowed over 146 points per 100 possessions in Favors' 57 minutes over the first four games. The veteran simply has not played well and is a tough matchup for this series.
Snyder needs to play Gobert as much as possible and think about scrapping the Favors minutes for small ball when Rudy sits. While the Clippers present some matchup challenges with their small units, the Jazz need to play their best players as much as possible, even if Gobert is much better against more traditional lineups. He's good enough to hold up against smaller groups, so just play the man and see what happens.
Follow Us
Subscribe