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Rough Week For The Jazz

Authored by Ben Wilkinson - January 30, 2005 - 8:43 pm

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The Jazz struggled again last week. After the loss against New Jersey on Saturday night, they went 1-2 for the week and their overall record fell to a troubling 15-30, 16.5 games behind the Seattle Supersonics in the Northwest Division of the Western Conference. The Jazz are a full 9 games behind the Lakers for the eighth and final position in the playoff race.

What seems to be hurting the Jazz more than anything is their endurance, or lack there of. The Jazz seem to be competitive in every ballgame right until the middle of the third quarter. Things are then all down hill from there. The Jazz could have made some big progress in the Western Conference standings last week had they been able to finish games against Minnesota and New Jersey.

On Wednesday the Sonics came to town, arriving late after a game but important victory over the Lakers the previous night. The Sonics looked tired and lethargic against a Jazz team that was seeking revenge from a Seattle team that beat them on the previous Sunday in Seattle. The Jazz won the game 109-100.

The Jazz gained reassuring news by the play of Andrei Kirilinko. AK47 had 12 points, 2 rebounds and five blocks in 20 minutes of play including two crucial blocks in the closing minutes of play. Raul Lopez made a big push to solidify his spot as the starting PG for the Jazz by dishing out a career high of 11 assists and leading the Jazz in scoring with 20 points on 6 of 10 shooting.

On Friday night the Jazz met Kevin Garnett and the Minnesota Timberwolves. The T-Wolves won their fifth game in a row by beating the Jazz 93-91. The Jazz held the lead for a majority of the game before KG and the Wolves came roaring back. Garnett led the way with 25 points on 8 of 17 shooting including a key steal in the final minute of the game to wrap it up.

The Jazz were again led by Raul Lopez who had 14 points, 9 assists and 2 steals. AK47 returned to the starting line-up for the Jazz and played a very solid 35 minutes. He helped the Jazz by giving them 14 points on 5 of 9 shooting. As a team the Jazz shot a miserable 20% from behind the arc. They also logged a concerning 17 turnovers.

The very next night the Jazz met Vince Carter and his New Jersey Nets. Carter shot a blistering 5 for 5 from behind the three point line while leading the Nets to a 99-82 victory in Salt Lake City, in a game in which the Nets never trailed. Carter finished the game with 30 points, the second game in a row in which he had accomplished such a feat.

The Jazz suffered their forth loss in their last five games. Nothing stood out more glaringly in the Jazz box score other than the fact that Raja Bell was the only Jazz player to score in double figures with 20 points. The Jazz shot a horrible 38.6% from the field and for the second straight game managed to turn the ball over at least 15 times.

The Jazz have a long road ahead of them if they have any desire to get back into the playoff hunt. They get somewhat of a break this week when the expansion Charlotte Bobcats visit on Tuesday night and the laughable New Orleans Hornets come to town on Saturday. Unless things are far worse than meets the eye, the Jazz can go ahead and add two more “W” to their win total.