This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
When the Jazz visited Indiana at the beginning of the year, the Pacers looked a little lost. Their offseason was marked by shuffling personnel with an eye on going small and speeding up their play and, in the first week of the season, the Pacers were out of sorts as they were beaten 97-76 by a Jazz team that looked comfortable and in control.
But when Paul George and company take the court in Salt Lake City on Saturday night, the roles might feel somewhat reversed.
"They're just getting better at what they've been doing," Jazz coach Quin Snyder said of the Pacers, who have gone 12-3 since that loss to the Jazz. "We played them so early in the year. It was a little bit like the situation we're in now. When we played them last, they were just kind of figuring out, 'Who are we? How do we fit together? How do we play and where are our shots coming from?' That's a little of what we saw last night" against the Orlando Magic.
With center Rudy Gobert out with a strained MCL, the Jazz must now regroup and make major adjustments on both ends of the floor. And if Thursday's game was any indication, Snyder could rely heavily on smaller lineups to space the floor and provide a greater offensive punch.
Point guard Trey Burke, who had 13 points and six assists against Orlando, liked what he saw from that look Thursday.
"Yeah, I do," he said. "I think we're able to stretch the floor a little more. We're able to get out in transition. We're a little quicker. Guys are able to drive and kick. I think that's playing to our advantage."
Coming off the bench Thursday night against the Magic, Burke had a team-high six assists. He could have had even more. According to the NBA's data, Burke had 13 assist opportunities Thursday. He averages about five a game.
"I think our spacing was great," Burke said. "Guys were in the corner. [Derrick Favors] did a great job of pulling that weak-side man in. That corner was open all night. I think collectively for the guards we all made good decisions. We got in there and found the open man."
Gobert is officially listed as "out indefinitely," and Snyder hopes that team will help make the Jazz better in the long-term.
"We can play a number of different ways," he said. "We haven't wanted to because we've wanted to have Rudy and Fav in the game. Now we're going to have be more versatile."
Staying put?
Even with Gobert sidelined for an extended period of time, don't expect rookie big man Tibor Pleiss to be recalled right away from the D-League. Pleiss was sent to Idaho to get playing time, having logged just 13 minutes of NBA action so far this year, and the Jazz seem to believe Boise is still the best place for him right now.
"The most important thing for Tibor right now is to play," Snyder said. "If we feel like he's going to be solidified in the rotation as a result of this, he would presumably come back. But until we can really accurately assess that, I think, again, the most important thing for him is to get an opportunity to be on the floor, wherever that is."
Injury report
Jazz rookie Trey Lyles won't get an on-court reunion with his Kentucky teammate next week. The Sacramento Kings announced that rookie Willie Cauley-Stein will miss 4-6 weeks with a dislocated finger. The Jazz play at Sacramento on Tuesday.
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