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The Utah Jazz have a choking problem. All season long, Rudy Gobert, Donovan Mitchell, and the rest of the team have had troubles closing out huge leads. It's been a recurring problem for this team as they face multiple struggles throughout the year.
Their latest blown lead involve a 17-point Jazz lead over the Phoenix Suns that they squandered in the fourth quarter. Mitchell, in particular, struggled to close out the game, as he couldn't buy a bucket against the tenacious Phoenix defense. As the game was winding down, Mitchell slammed his fist on the scorer's table in frustration, surprising Rudy Gobert. (via Rob Perez)
Donovan Mitchell just slammed the scorer’s table so hard it spooked Rudy at the line pic.twitter.com/n521Q1NHO2
— Rob Perez (@WorldWideWob) April 9, 2022
After starting off the season in the top three of the Western Conference, the Jazz have fallen off hard. They have routinely blown double-digit leads against their opponents in a choking show that would leave Atlanta Falcons fans with PTSD. This obviously isn't a good sign for this team, as they're heading into the playoffs in a vulnerable position. Their offense has struggled, as they have failed to score consistently without Mitchell.
Adding insult to their injury are the rumors surrounding their two stars: Gobert and Mitchell. Rumors of their discontent with each other have been circulating for a long time now. However, as the Jazz have struggled, these rumors started to grow louder, with one particular stat gaining headlines. The visuals also aren't encouraging, as Gobert has been visibly frustrated at times when he doesn't get the ball in an ideal spot.
What's even more frustrating about these Jazz teams is that fact that they have the talent on-paper to be a great team. Their past regular-season performances have shown that. However, they have struggled in the playoffs… and this year, that same struggles seems to have carried over to the regular season.
Of course, all of these rumors and talk surrounding the team will be erased if they perform well in the playoffs. However, based on how they've looked to end the season, they seem likely to be headed to a first-round exit. We'll see if Quin Snyder can pull his team together just before the start of the post-season, or if it will be a repeat of the previous year's playoff runs.
