Nets 105, Jazz 88
After 20 years on the job, Jazz coach Jerry Sloan has a frame of reference to deal with everything. But Sloan admitted to us Friday that he couldn't remember the last time the Jazz had ever played a back-to-back set of home games.
It last happened in February 2001, plus a couple of times in the lockout-shortened 1998-99 season. You'd have to go back to March 1983 after that to find the last time the Jazz played home games on consecutive nights.
The situation presented a unique set of decisions for Sloan, namely whether he should hold shootaround Saturday morning. He decided to keep the Jazz's routine the same as if this weekend was a traditional back-to-back with either one or both games on the road.
He immediately regretted that decision after the Jazz's 105-88 loss to the Nets, and told his players as much.
"We were at home, I gave them the morning off, probably made a mistake with that," Sloan said. "I question myself every time I do something and I did on that."
Sloan questioned where the energy and intensity was in a game for which his players should have been especially well rested. In a lot of ways, it was as if the road Jazz came home to play a game at EnergySolutions Arena.
"Our schedule is so bananas, something like this shouldn't make any difference," Kyle Korver said. "I know coach Sloan was thinking maybe we should have had a shootaround. If we had a back-to-back on the road, we wouldn't have had a shootaround.
"None of it's on him. It's all on us. We just didn't come out and play well tonight."
The biggest reason why Sloan didn't schedule a shootaround was he took one look at the schedule and saw the Jazz playing three sets of back-to-backs in a nine-day span. He decided that doing everything to keep his players' legs fresh was most important.
At the same time, Sloan admitted to us that those decisions keep him up at night, wondering if he's making the right call. The past couple of weeks, I've definitely got a sense that he's weighing whether to take a stricter approach to things.
The Jazz have started 11-7 and Sloan believes the Jazz are more talented than their record indicates, despite all the injuries. He wants to see a better effort on the road and a better effort defensively, with the Nets shooting 56.4 percent in the first half Saturday.
Sloan talked last week about starting to hold shootaround on the road even when the Jazz play the second game of a back-to-back. It's unlikely he'll do so this week, with the Jazz arriving home late Tuesday night from Sacramento and playing an 8:30 p.m. game Friday.
But it wouldn't surprise me to see an extra practice or an extra shootaround included somewhere along the line if the Jazz continue on their current path.
"There's no excuse for us, giving us a day off," C.J. Miles said, "you've got to find a way to take care of your body and be able to come out and be able to perform no matter what happens."
* * *
The Jazz could be a very tough situation this week if Andrei Kirilenko misses time with the right ankle injury that forced him to leave Saturday's game. Carlos Boozer is trying to recover from a strained quadriceps tendon and the Jazz are playing four games in five nights.
Deron Williams normally would be counted on to carry more of the load, but he's only three games into his return from a sprained left ankle. It's not even certain if Williams will be able to play both ends of the Jazz's two sets of back-to-backs this week.
The Jazz open the week with a game against a Sacramento team they embarrassed in the third quarter Friday, scoring 44 points in the third quarter and throwing alley-oop dunks off the backboard. Then again, the Kings did lose to Dallas by 23 at home Saturday.
* * *
Before the season started, I went month by month trying to predict the Jazz's record. I had them reaching the end of November at 13-5. A couple of you had the Jazz at 15-3 and 14-4. Obviously, nobody could have seen just how extensive the injuries would be.
At the same time, nobody had the Jazz at 11-7 right now. They're going to have some ground to make up in December, which traditionally has been the toughest month of the Jazz season, thanks largely to the pre-Christmas trip.
The Jazz will play nine of 15 games in December on the road. They went 5-11 last season in December and could look back at the month as costing them home-court advantage and a chance at the top playoff seed in the Western Conference.
As of right now, the Jazz are two games behind the 53-win pace I thought they'd be on at the start of the season. That included a 9-6 December. We'll see what happens.
One other thing: The Jazz have played an absolutely relentless schedule so far, with 17 games in November. Things don't get any easier here at the start of December, with four games in five nights.
* * *
The Jazz played 48 minutes of basketball Saturday and blocked exactly two shots. One was by Paul Millsap and one was by Kosta Koufos. As many times as Devin Harris drove the lane, you have to expect better than that. Rookie Brook Lopez had four blocks himself for New Jersey.
* * *
Just wondering if Kirilenko's injury could be blamed on the Sports Illustrated jinx. He is officially day-to-day and will be reevaluated Saturday. The Jazz said X-rays were negative for any sprains or fractures, but that Kirilenko is bothered by a point of irritation in his ankle.
Also wondering if anybody thinks the Dallas Mavericks didn't make a huge mistake trading Devin Harris for Jason Kidd last season. Harris was spectacular Saturday, pushing the ball, hitting spinning jumpers, driving for layups and scoring 34 points on 13-for-17 shooting in 36 minutes against the Jazz.
--Ross Siler
It last happened in February 2001, plus a couple of times in the lockout-shortened 1998-99 season. You'd have to go back to March 1983 after that to find the last time the Jazz played home games on consecutive nights.
The situation presented a unique set of decisions for Sloan, namely whether he should hold shootaround Saturday morning. He decided to keep the Jazz's routine the same as if this weekend was a traditional back-to-back with either one or both games on the road.
He immediately regretted that decision after the Jazz's 105-88 loss to the Nets, and told his players as much.
"We were at home, I gave them the morning off, probably made a mistake with that," Sloan said. "I question myself every time I do something and I did on that."
Sloan questioned where the energy and intensity was in a game for which his players should have been especially well rested. In a lot of ways, it was as if the road Jazz came home to play a game at EnergySolutions Arena.
"Our schedule is so bananas, something like this shouldn't make any difference," Kyle Korver said. "I know coach Sloan was thinking maybe we should have had a shootaround. If we had a back-to-back on the road, we wouldn't have had a shootaround.
"None of it's on him. It's all on us. We just didn't come out and play well tonight."
The biggest reason why Sloan didn't schedule a shootaround was he took one look at the schedule and saw the Jazz playing three sets of back-to-backs in a nine-day span. He decided that doing everything to keep his players' legs fresh was most important.
At the same time, Sloan admitted to us that those decisions keep him up at night, wondering if he's making the right call. The past couple of weeks, I've definitely got a sense that he's weighing whether to take a stricter approach to things.
The Jazz have started 11-7 and Sloan believes the Jazz are more talented than their record indicates, despite all the injuries. He wants to see a better effort on the road and a better effort defensively, with the Nets shooting 56.4 percent in the first half Saturday.
Sloan talked last week about starting to hold shootaround on the road even when the Jazz play the second game of a back-to-back. It's unlikely he'll do so this week, with the Jazz arriving home late Tuesday night from Sacramento and playing an 8:30 p.m. game Friday.
But it wouldn't surprise me to see an extra practice or an extra shootaround included somewhere along the line if the Jazz continue on their current path.
"There's no excuse for us, giving us a day off," C.J. Miles said, "you've got to find a way to take care of your body and be able to come out and be able to perform no matter what happens."
* * *
The Jazz could be a very tough situation this week if Andrei Kirilenko misses time with the right ankle injury that forced him to leave Saturday's game. Carlos Boozer is trying to recover from a strained quadriceps tendon and the Jazz are playing four games in five nights.
Deron Williams normally would be counted on to carry more of the load, but he's only three games into his return from a sprained left ankle. It's not even certain if Williams will be able to play both ends of the Jazz's two sets of back-to-backs this week.
The Jazz open the week with a game against a Sacramento team they embarrassed in the third quarter Friday, scoring 44 points in the third quarter and throwing alley-oop dunks off the backboard. Then again, the Kings did lose to Dallas by 23 at home Saturday.
* * *
Before the season started, I went month by month trying to predict the Jazz's record. I had them reaching the end of November at 13-5. A couple of you had the Jazz at 15-3 and 14-4. Obviously, nobody could have seen just how extensive the injuries would be.
At the same time, nobody had the Jazz at 11-7 right now. They're going to have some ground to make up in December, which traditionally has been the toughest month of the Jazz season, thanks largely to the pre-Christmas trip.
The Jazz will play nine of 15 games in December on the road. They went 5-11 last season in December and could look back at the month as costing them home-court advantage and a chance at the top playoff seed in the Western Conference.
As of right now, the Jazz are two games behind the 53-win pace I thought they'd be on at the start of the season. That included a 9-6 December. We'll see what happens.
One other thing: The Jazz have played an absolutely relentless schedule so far, with 17 games in November. Things don't get any easier here at the start of December, with four games in five nights.
* * *
The Jazz played 48 minutes of basketball Saturday and blocked exactly two shots. One was by Paul Millsap and one was by Kosta Koufos. As many times as Devin Harris drove the lane, you have to expect better than that. Rookie Brook Lopez had four blocks himself for New Jersey.
* * *
Just wondering if Kirilenko's injury could be blamed on the Sports Illustrated jinx. He is officially day-to-day and will be reevaluated Saturday. The Jazz said X-rays were negative for any sprains or fractures, but that Kirilenko is bothered by a point of irritation in his ankle.
Also wondering if anybody thinks the Dallas Mavericks didn't make a huge mistake trading Devin Harris for Jason Kidd last season. Harris was spectacular Saturday, pushing the ball, hitting spinning jumpers, driving for layups and scoring 34 points on 13-for-17 shooting in 36 minutes against the Jazz.
--Ross Siler
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