As a gift for the new year, we offer up the greatest video in the history of the world. It involves, of course, a young Jerry Sloan helping with local Air Force recruitment. Naturally, Superman makes a guest appearance and tries to get in on the action, which causes an unimpressed Sloan to demand “What are your qualifications???”
Special thanks to twitter user Marc Juliar, who deserves a medal of honor for bringing that video to the attention of the world via Kelly Dwyer and BDL.
Copyright 2011 NBAE (Photo by Melissa Majchrzak/NBAE via Getty Images)
By Matthew Coles
Sure, Friday night’s 102-99 win over Philadelphia was Derrick Favors’ coming out party and the young Jazzmen found a way to close out a game at the end, but the fortunes of Utah’s early season changed on a few hustle plays in the second quarter.
When Paul Millsap re-entered the game early in the second period, the Jazz were down by 13 points and their season had consisted of nine quarters of uninspired, weak basketball. Millsap couldn’t shoot a lick in the game (4-of-16) but he did something much more valuable — he became a leader by example.
“It was time for us to get back to playing Utah Jazz basketball,” Millsap said, though all the turnover in the organization since midseason 2010-11 had made it seem unlikely that the players knew what “Jazz basketball” meant anymore.
Millsap, who has been with Utah longer than anyone other than CJ Miles, soon let his teammates see what the Jazz have exemplified for more than two decades.
The Jazz and the crowd had been in a shell-shocked swoon after the over-the-top pyrotechnic display that accompanied pre-game introductions. But the players earned their first in-game standing ovations from a pair of hustle plays, not fancy shots or passes. When Millsap mopped the floor with his body and outwrestled a pair of Sixers for a loose ball, Jazz fans saw something that had been lacking in all three games.
Philadelphia coach Doug Collins noticed what Jazz fans have taken for granted all these years.
“In the second quarter, the physicality of the game changed. They started knocking us around. They got some loose balls and they started getting to the free throw line,” the astute former TNT analyst observed.
A few minutes later, Gordon Hayward hung in the air long enough to block ground-bound Elton Brand and the crowd erupted. The Jazz served notice that things weren’t going to come easily anymore for opponents, at least in this game. The Jazz started holding screens longer, hip-checking cutters, attacking the rim, and banging underneath the basket. Favors was playing aggressively on both ends of the floor. It became contagious.
Coach Ty Corbin needs Hayward to mix it up on a nightly basis, just like the other Jazz player with the choir boy face who became known as one of the league’s nastiest players — Utah legend John Stockton. The coach said the second-year forward “needs to learn that you’ve got to be strong — you almost have to be a little nasty. They’re going to put bodies on you, they’re going to put hands on you. He’s capable of doing it,” and Hayward showed it Friday.
The Jazz, outside of Millsap, may not have even known it themselves but Brand told me he didn’t think Jazz pride and trademark nastiness would be absent for long.
“We knew they’d come hard in their home opener after two pretty lopsided losses. In that second quarter, Utah definitely started fighting harder. They got to the 50-50 balls more than we did,” Brand said.
At the other end, the Jazz cashed in on wild Devin Harris drives toward the basket. They weren’t pretty but he was getting the calls and he was forcing the action. Corbin essentially told Harris when he pulled him off the court just four minutes into the game that the point guard had to push it or he wouldn’t be playing much.
The first three games of Utah’s half-court offense looked a lot like my Jr. Jazz team trying to run a set play. Corbin sees what we all see — this team is best served pushing the tempo. Earl Watson got up and down the court when he spelled Harris as well. But the missing link was the physical defense and the hustle.
“It’s so much easier to run when we get stops, as opposed to taking the ball up and trying to run that way. When we play aggressively defensively, that allows me to get in transition, that allows me to play my best and guys get easier shots that way,” Harris said.
So even if most of the Jazzmen have forgotten or may not know what Jazz basketball is, the rest of the league remembers. Lou Williams, who waltzed to the basket on his first couple drives of the game, also noticed a change — and expected it.
“That’s how Utah plays. As long as I’ve been in the league, they’ve been a very aggressive basketball team,” he said. “They will beat you up.”
It remains to be seen if the Jazz will continue playing with passion and heart — and they may not currently be built for consistency — but they’ve had the key to success all along.
Brand said it best: “When Utah plays that physical, they can beat anybody.”
Copyright 2011 NBAE (Photo by Melissa Majchrzak/NBAE via Getty Images)
My apologies to any of you who happened to read the post that was accidentally live for a bit. I did enjoy hearing from a few of you who were very confused. Hopefully you enjoyed the inexplicable table with images of Alec Burks and Avery Johnson and stat lines for LeBron James.
Thanks for reading!
The Maya are probably wrong about the world ending in 2012, but the Miller-owned Mayan restaurant in Salt Lake is already closed–and after last night’s debacle in Los Angeles, it’s looking like an apt metaphor to describe any enthusiasm for an exciting Jazz season.
The restaurant was overpriced, didn’t have good food, and had uninteresting performers. I’m worried that a similar formula might be in play with the Jazz this year.
Luckily for the Jazz, the bitter taste of the embarrassing defeat on Opening Night can’t linger for long. The shortened season means it’s on to Denver and game with the Nuggets tonight. Memories have to be short, but the dull thud of boring loss after boring loss is the perfect cadence for an apathetic lullaby.
After watching last night’s game, it’s clear the Jazz are in big trouble this season. I’m not a trading man, but at this point (after one game!) I would be open to nearly any trade. There isn’t a single player in a Utah uniform who can really drive interest. Big Al certainly isn’t doing it, and none of the new pieces seem to have a flair for the right kind of dramatic.
Even bad restaurants can be enjoyable, but they have to bring something to the table.
Here’s to a better showing in Denver!
—
Game 2:
December 28, 2011
Pepsi Center, 7pm Mountain
TV: Root Sports (693 Comcast. Here’s a nearly worthless list of channel guides by provider, too.)
The NBA made a glorious return to action on Sunday and kicked things off with what some people are calling the greatest commercial ever. I’ve already watched it 75 million times and I’m not showing signs of stopping. Every scene is spectacular, but I especially loved the Nets-era Deron Williams taking on John Stockton. There’s also a nice Karl Malone sighting, as well as Steve Nash with Pete Maravich.
It’s a beautifully reconciliatory gift to the players after the acrimonious lockout. These are the kinds of projects that turn players into legends and is a very clear reminder to the players to be very, very grateful for the myth-making PR machine the league provides.
Join us after the open scrimmage on Saturday night for an informal meet-up at Red Rock around the corner from the arena (254 South 200 West). Nothing planned, just a fun spot for everybody to hang out and get some food and talk about the Jazz on a Saturday night.
Consider yourself invited.
SALT LAKE CITY (December 13, 2011) – Jazz fans will have their first opportunity to get a glimpse of the 2011-12 squad when the team holds its annual intrasquad scrimmage on Saturday, December 17 at 7 p.m. MT at EnergySolutions Arena. The event is free of charge and open to the public, and tickets are not required for admission. Doors will open at 6 p.m.
Rod Zundel explains the defensive changes.
Much is being made of coach Ty Corbin’s decision to modify the Utah Jazz defensive philosophy. The SLTrib breaks it down here. You can watch KSL’s Rod Zundel diagram the basics here. Jerry Sloan’s teams were coached to force the player with the ball to the middle, but now the team will attempt to force the ball to the baseline.
Here’s a nice explanation from @HoopsU:
By forcing baseline, the low post ballside can help stop penetration. The weakside low post can then rotate over to cover the offensive player in the ball side post. The top guard can rotate over ballside if need be to cover a possible kick back to the ball side wing. The weak side defensive guard can rotate into the lane to cover a high post flash. If defended and executed properly, the only open offensive player is on the weakside wing. The only pass available to get it over there is askip pass. By the time the skip pass reaches its target, the defender will be able to recover and closeout in plenty of time or possibly even intercept it.
The one and only time I may decide to force middle is if I have a phenomenal shot blocker. Funneling the offense to a shut down shot blocker may be of benefit to forcing bad shots and bad decisions. How often, however, do we have that kind of player?
To my knowledge, the only teams in the NBA that forced the ball to the middle last year were the Jazz and the Orlando Magic. One of those teams had a dominant center.
Big fan of Ty Corbin’s change in defensive philosophy for the Jazz. It’s not so much forcing baseline as it is forcing away from the paint. Sloan insisted on forcing to the middle because he believed it was easier for other players to step up and provide defensive help.
I can understand the thinking, but it was counterintuitive to how everyone learns to play defense growing up. You force right-handed players to the left, left-handed players to the right, and you don’t let anyone drive the middle of the lane. Sloan’s defensive system encouraged giving up drives down the lane.
The Jazz might not be better than an average defensive team, but I think it’s preferable to be reacting and not thinking about everything on the defensive end, especially for such a young team.
I like the change and think it will be helpful, but as Al Jefferson says in that clip from KSL, it won’t magically solve all the team’s defensive problems. Guys still need to commit to the philosophy and help each other out. Forcing baseline can be a disaster if the ball handler can turn the corner and get to the rim.
That being said, some are treating the philosophy of forcing middle as if it were archaic or silly. Ross Siler also makes the assertion that most guys grow up learning to force to the baseline, which I don’t necessarily agree to be true. Salt City Hoops correspondent Eric Jackson played a little college hoops and had this to say:
I’ve never had a coach that wanted us to force baseline, but I also know what it does to the D if a guy gets to the paint on the drive. You’ve got to have great help defense to force middle, and I think the Jazz have the right big men to do it. They move well and are smart.
In the NBA, with no hand checking and superfast, scoring point guards who can get in the lane, it’s usually too dangerous to force middle. The options for an offense are more limited on the baseline and it’s harder to finish at the rim in the NBA. Forcing baseline takes away some of their options.
The coaches at my alma mater Provo High preach a switching/help man-to-man defense that is based on the philosophy to never give up the baseline and that all your help is in the middle. Players are taught to get a foot on the baseline and never give it up, like the opposite of Al Pacino’s “Inch Speech.”
Jerry Sloans’s team defense philosophy was based on his ideas of rugged individualism and the idea that every player should take responsibility for stopping his man. Unfortunately, the current state of the NBA makes it nearly impossible for anyone to keep the D.Roses of the world from getting in the paint at will.
I’m looking forward to seeing a new look from the Jazz, but any defensive success will still require commitment and trust. Hopefully the days of olé defense are in the past.
Update: Ross weighed in on Twitter with an important addendum:
I hate the description of forcing baseline. Nobody wants to give up baseline drives. It’s forcing away from the paint. The angles are just so much better forcing away from the paint.
It’s true. “Forcing baseline” shouldn’t be mistaken for “giving up the baseline.”
We kick off the 2011-12 season with some discussion about the Chris Paul / Lakers fiasco, Jazz media day, and the upcoming season. Forgive the poor audio quality — we bypassed the studio and went straight to the homebrew/Skype solution.
Enjoy, and let us know your thoughts.
Follow the participants:
Spencer Hall / @saltcityhoops
Jeff Lind / @jefflind
Justin Davies / @jazzhype
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
I’ve been sitting here for a few hours trying to find the right words to express what I’m feeling about this Paul/Lakers/Stern hoopla. I’ve got nothing… I don’t know what to say. Instead, here’s a timeline of last night’s events as they unfolded to me:
3:58 pm: The trade was originally reported as follows (by a twitter MUST follow Adrian Wojnarowski):
I was furious. Not at the league, per se, but at the Lakers… here they were pulling off another blockbuster trade, while keeping all their major pieces of a championship contender in place. Imagining the Lakers with Paul, Kobe, AND Gasol was too much. Super teams… you guys win.
At 3:58.30 pm I tweeted this:
And I meant it. The league JUST went through a lockout with a major focus on bringing parity and competitive balance to the league! This particular trade seemed to flush all of that, and let the Lakers trade three quarters for a silver dollar.
At 4:06 pm this happened:
That changed my feelings completely. Suddenly, the Lakers didn’t seem so scary. They were forced to give up Gasol and Odom (the length that REALLY killed the Jazz year after year), and they were left with Kobe (bad knees), Bynum (bad knee), and Chris Paul (no knee at all). In a compressed 66 game season, they’d be hard pressed to come out of it in one serviceable piece. I mean, sure, they’d be scary in spurts… but when you’re playing back to back to backs on those legs, you’re going to have major rotation problems.
The three team trade was supposed to go something like this:
Lakers:
Rockets:
New Orleans:
Then at 7:07 pm THIS HAPPENED:
Turns out the league owned Hornets (see: 29 owners and David Stern), were not impressed with this trade, and they were not going to let it happen. Owners lost it, complained to David, and Stern made the final decision to kill the trade. Unprecedented. All hell broke loose, EVERYWHERE. My twitter feed, emails, and texts blew up. Before I went to bed, I had over 50 emails in my inbox, and when I woke up I had almost 30 more waiting. I saw everything from “David Stern was right” to “David Stern has lost his mind.”
“All decisions are made on the basis of what is in the best interests of the Hornets. In the case of the trade proposal that was made to the Hornets for Chris Paul, we decided, free from the influence of other NBA owners, that the team was better served with Chris in a Hornets uniform than by the outcome of the terms of that trade.”
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