Confidence is high
Talking to the Jazz players and coaches, I sense they are still confident about their chances in their series with the Lakers.
Obviously, they aren't going to come out and say, "We're dead. They're too good. We can't stop Kobe Bryant. We'll never win a game in Los Angeles." At the same time, there is a tone in their voices that suggests they honestly believe this series is not over, despite their 2-0 deficit.
"We've been right there in both games," Deron Williams said, "and that's the most encouraging part. We've performed pretty bad but we're still right in the games and had chances to win."
Said Carlos Boozer: "I still think we played three good quarters in both games. What we have to do now is play four good quarters -- put a whole game together."
In Game 1, the Jazz rallied from a 19-point deficit. They got as close as 91-87 with 4:44 remaining before scoring only three points in the next four minutes.
In Game 2, the Jazz rallied from a 15-point deficit. They got as close as 99-94 with 5:58 left before scoring only two points in the next three minutes.
Asked why his team suddenly stopped scoring after battling its way back into the game, coach Jerry Sloan credited the Lakers. But he also said, "We took a couple of bad shots, in both games, I think. You take bad shots and they get easy shots. That's always been the way this game has been played. That's why we have to be a little bit more diligent in what we're doing and understand, "Hey, we can't force it.'"
Instead of taking bad shots that lead to long rebounds and open-court chances for the Lakers, Sloan said, "I'd rather have a 24-second violation. ... At least it makes them play defense a little longer. At least it keeps them down on the other end of the floor."
-- Steve Luhm
Obviously, they aren't going to come out and say, "We're dead. They're too good. We can't stop Kobe Bryant. We'll never win a game in Los Angeles." At the same time, there is a tone in their voices that suggests they honestly believe this series is not over, despite their 2-0 deficit.
"We've been right there in both games," Deron Williams said, "and that's the most encouraging part. We've performed pretty bad but we're still right in the games and had chances to win."
Said Carlos Boozer: "I still think we played three good quarters in both games. What we have to do now is play four good quarters -- put a whole game together."
In Game 1, the Jazz rallied from a 19-point deficit. They got as close as 91-87 with 4:44 remaining before scoring only three points in the next four minutes.
In Game 2, the Jazz rallied from a 15-point deficit. They got as close as 99-94 with 5:58 left before scoring only two points in the next three minutes.
Asked why his team suddenly stopped scoring after battling its way back into the game, coach Jerry Sloan credited the Lakers. But he also said, "We took a couple of bad shots, in both games, I think. You take bad shots and they get easy shots. That's always been the way this game has been played. That's why we have to be a little bit more diligent in what we're doing and understand, "Hey, we can't force it.'"
Instead of taking bad shots that lead to long rebounds and open-court chances for the Lakers, Sloan said, "I'd rather have a 24-second violation. ... At least it makes them play defense a little longer. At least it keeps them down on the other end of the floor."
-- Steve Luhm
9:53 AM
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1 Comments:
Seems to me that if they could hold Odom and Fisher to about 20 points combined, the Jazz would be doing really well right now. Boozer hasn't been great, but the bench has been picking up the slack offensively for him. They can live with Kobe getting 30 points and someone else getting 20. They just can't survive while 4 guys are getting 20+ points.
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