Utah Jazz fans, you must all be fuming that your team's 24-game home win streak was snapped last night (L, 121-125). Not only did your team, the best in the mighty Western Conference, lose and end that streak. To make matters worse, your team beefed it to the Washington Wizards.
Well, if you're feeling bad, at least take comfort in the fact that you're not alone.
Donovan Mitchell, on his poor shooting stretch: "To be honest with you, it felt like it was 20 in a row. You could feel it. … It wasn’t the misses, it was the reads. There were guys open on some of those shots, and I missed them, and it pissed me off."
— Eric Walden (@tribjazz) April 13, 2021
This is interesting. What Jazz star Donovan Mitchell was referring to was his 1/12 shooting split through quarters two and three after a hot start to the game (17 points on 7/10 shooting). Of course, most fans will point to his cold streak as the reason they lost the game, and it's nice that Mitchell looked a little deeper. A superstar with a mind for the whole team is exactly what you want as a team. However, his six assists for the game were right around his season average and +8 net plus/minus still painted him as a positive force on the court.
Utah as a whole, in spite of not having one of their more gossamer shooting nights, still outscored their offensive rating of 118.3.
The problem was that their usually top tier defense (Def Rtg. 108.7, fourth in the league) somehow let the lowly Wizards hang 125 on them Monday night.
But here's the thing: that is okay.
Russell Westbrook and Bradley Beal are powder kegs liable to go off any given night, and that's exactly what they did: Beal stroked it for 34 points on 40% 3FG, and Westbrook had himself an incredible triple-double (25 points, 14 assists, 14 rebounds).
The reality of games like these is that the Jazz are the number one seed in the entire league by far: sometimes they just won't wake up for a game. But they normally know how to beat the teams they're supposed to, and their defense hasn't really slipped in any trending way. In fact, Monday's loss was the most points Utah gave up since the middle of March, when they played…
The Washington Wizards.
Jazz fans, the frustration is real. Your team still doesn't get respect as the best regular season team in the league. Neither do your superstars. To lose a big streak to a bottom-feeder is just adding insult to injury.
But the Wizards, bad as they are, are giant killers. They probably won't make the playoffs this season, and yet they have signature wins over the Brooklyn Nets, Phoenix Suns, both LA teams, and the Denver Nuggets.
So, Donovan, Jazz fans, don't be too hard on yourselves. The giant killers caught you napping, which is okay. As long as you are wide awake come playoff time, this will just be one more bump in the road.
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