The Utah Jazz are fun again

I’m pretty sure my heart rate is still elevated from last night, when the Utah Jazz were able to push their win streak to 10! This is the longest winning streak since they won 12 straight back in 2009. They have today off and are back in action tomorrow night before heading into the All-Star break.

I love so many things about this team. I love the players that Dennis Lindsey was able to find that are leading the success. Donovan Mitchell is a rookie and was the 13th pick of the draft. Joe Ingles was undrafted and cut by the Clippers. Rudy Gobert was the 27th pick. Royce O’Neale is an undrafted rookie. I could keep going but you get the point.

I love the atmosphere and attitude the team seems to have. I love the system that Quin Snyder runs. Players are taking note and loving it as well.

7-time All-Star and 17 year veteran Joe Johnson said this was the closest group he’s ever been around. That is high praise from a household name among NBA circles. Jae Crowder has raving reviews already as well.

We are having fun too Jae! This has been some of the funnest Jazz basketball I have ever seen in my life, and I’m loving every minute of it.

Another example of how tight-knit this group is came last night. With a few minutes left, it was time for Rudy Gobert to check in. But he recognized how great Derrick Favors had been playing and had a discussion with Quin Snyder.

That is leadership and that is winning basketball. And for one more example, also from last night. Royce O’Neale has been incredible lately, and played some lockdown defense on that last possession last night. Quin Snyder was pretty pumped about it:

Something special is developing in Utah and players are wanting to be apart of it. I look forward to what the rest of the season has to bring, but also the next few years of Jazz basketball. You gotta love it baby!

Back to Joe Johnson. And Rodney Hood as well. I just wanted to take a minute to appreciate the contributions they gave to this franchise. Along with that quote above from Dennis Lindsey about Joe Johnson, he had the following to say about Rodney Hood.

These two were professionals and true Jazzmen. I’ll always be grateful for the basketball they played here and wish them the best moving forward. From that silky smooth Hoodie jumper to that old man, one-on-one back down game from Joe Johnson, they gave us some good memories. Here are probably my 2 favorites for each player.

Thanks for the good times you two, and good luck moving forward! What are your favorite memories of these two?

The trade deadline and the Jazz winning have lead to some exciting times. Which means you are all keeping me rather busy with the Fan Posts this week.

BellFazierRookie really wanted to Keep Favors and Hood.

BTork is annoyed at the lack of attention and respect from this winning streak.

Theo Kamis discussed how Ricky Rubio was in a similar situation last year:

After 47 games last season, Ricky Rubio and his team, the Minnesota Timberwolves, were 18-29, and 3 1/2 games back of the Denver Nuggets for the 8th seed in the Western Conference.

After 47 games this season, Ricky Rubio and his team, the Utah Jazz, were 19-28, and 5 games back of the Denver Nuggets for the 8th seed in the Western Conference.

As Yogi Berra would say, deja vu all over again...but will it end that way too?

At the end of last season, the Timberwolves finished 31-51, 10 games back of the Portland Trail Blazers for the eighth seed in the playoffs.

This season’s ending will be different already for Rubio, for a lot of reasons, how do I love V(ivint), let me count the ways:

Cam Rollins believes the Utah Jazz are closing in on contention:

Before I begin to tell you why the Jazz are closer to contention than you think, we have to go back a few months.

Flashback to July 4, 2017...

Seattleballin believes (and we all agree) that Donovan Mitchell is too awesome:

If you all are like me, you can’t get enough of Donovan Mitchell. On days when there is not a Jazz game, I find myself daydreaming of Spida flying through the air and crushing alley oops. So I decided to make a highlight video of his best plays from the first half of the season. Enjoy. Donovan Mitchell Spider-Man Mix

I don’t think that link is working. Try this one.

https://youtu.be/EJjRoyT25mI

Watch that video!!

jdhoch14 gives a prediction around the NBA:

Not really a jazz post, but just an NBA theory I have and I wanted to share it. Thomas isn’t going to fit in with the Lakers unless they start him next to Lonzo. Even then, I think Lavar is going to try hard to push Thomas out of town so his kid doesn’t share the spotlight....

nc2003 shares thoughts on the Jae Crowder trade:

The Jae Crowder trade makes sense from a salary cap perspective. Crowder is making less than half of what Hood may get as a free agent, and he’s locked in for 2 1/2 more years. I wonder though how high of a draft pick could we have gotten for Rodney Hood...

And to finish up, amlmart1 wonders if the Jazz are collecting Plus/Minus Machines:

It seems so. Ricky & Crowder have been known for a while as plus minus machines. That´ article is a must read.

Joe Ingles was 10th best SF by RPM rankings last year and he´s now 8th, followed by Sepholosa at 9th and Royce O´Neal at 12. O’Neale was playing in Gran Canaria (Spain) in 2017. He didn´t show among the best 15 ACB players in any stats, with the exception of +-.

I don´t know what did the Jazz saw in Ekpe Udoh that they brought him from Turkey (I can´t read Turkish stats), other than his defense, but he´s right now 13th in RPM...

WOW. That was exhausting. Good work everyone!

Another player that deserves some huge credit for the current run is Derrick Favors. Amidst all the trade rumors leading up to the deadline he was able to stay focused and contribute. He looks healthy again this year and has been a beast lately.

He also reached a huge milestone in his Jazz career:

The closer it got to the deadline the less I wanted him moved and I’m so glad he is still in Utah. He may still go elsewhere this offseason, but for now I’m going to enjoy #15 for as long as I can.

Kelly Scalleta over on FanRag Sports wrote about the Jazz, “because everyone should be writing about the Jazz.” Jazz are suddenly making beautiful music together:

The Utah Jazz are kicking posteriors and taking names. They have won nine straight, and that hardly begins to describe their current level of dominance...

If we were to have last year’s draft again, it’s hard to envision anyone being taken over Donovan Mitchell, who looks everything like a cornerstone player to build a franchise around. The remarkable thing about Mitchell is that he seems to keep getting better...

Rudy Gobert has had some injury problems this season, and that has affected Utah’s defense. That’s as shocking as a politician’s fib, I know. Gobert played the first 12 games of the season, then missed 11. He played six, then missed 15. He returned 12 games ago and is finally back to being The Stifle Tower he was last year...

He goes on with further content about why and how the Jazz are playing so well right now. It’s a good read, and anyone writing about the Jazz deserves your clicks! Hopefully this is one of soon-to-be many examples of national media having to #TakeNote of the surging Utah Jazz!