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They've seen back, ankle and knee injuries.
Now add one more to the report after Monday night: the announced attendance of 19,000-plus people at Vivint Arena could be sidelined for a while after suffering a minor heart attack.
Not only did the Utah Jazz surrender a 20-point lead, but they needed a fourth-quarter rally and a clutch three to fend off the two-win Philadelphia 76ers on Monday at home.
"We escaped with one tonight," said Jazz forward Gordon Hayward after the 95-91 victory. "… We wanted to give everyone their money's worth, I guess."
The Jazz trailed by two with 38 seconds left after new Sixers' point guard Ish Smith threw a lob to center Nerlens Noel out of a timeout. On the ensuing possession, the Jazz looked to their leader for a big basket and Hayward, amid a 5-for-21 shooting night, hit his sixth field goal when it mattered most. The Jazz forward, who had a game-high 24 points, knocked down a wide-open 3-pointer to put Utah on top for good with 33 seconds to play.
"That's why you keep shooting," Hayward said.
And did the Jazz ever need to see that one go in.
The Jazz had lost two in a row coming into Monday night. Already without point guard Danté Exum (out for the season while rehabbing from an ACL tear) and center Rudy Gobert (out since Dec. 2 with an MCL sprain), the Jazz found out this week that shooting guard Alec Burks will miss several weeks with a fractured ankle.
The lowly Sixers were supposed to be good tonic, at least for one night, almost as if the NBA's schedule maker had scribbled on a pad and said, "Here. Take one of these and call me in the morning."
But even having to grind out a win against 2-31 Philadelphia was better than the alternative.
"It was a big-time win for us," Hayward said. "It would have been bad if we lost to these guys."
Things looked good early. In the first, the Jazz knocked down 57 percent of their shots and scored a season-high 37 points in the period. When point guard Trey Burke knocked down a triple early in the second, the Jazz had their first 20-point lead of the night.
Then Utah's shooters went cold. The Jazz shot just 9-for-40 in the second half, including 3-of-13 from deep.
"They amped it up and they put a lot of pressure on us," said Jazz center Jeff Withey, who started in place of the injured Derrick Favors and notched a 11-point, 12-rebound double-double.
The Sixers, meanwhile, outscored them 33-20 in the third quarter and held a four-point lead early in the fourth thanks in large part to the play of their newly acquired point guard. Smith, acquired last week in a trade with New Orleans, had helped the Sixers to a win Saturday over the Phoenix Suns. And on Monday Smith's speed and ability to run the pick-and-roll led to 22 points and 11 assists.
With rookie Jahlil Okafor dealing with knee soreness, Noel got the start at center for the Sixers and finished with 18 points, six rebounds and five blocked shots.
"They were scrappy. They fought back in the game and we didn't expect a fight like that," said Jazz guard Rodney Hood, who had 13 points on 4-of-15 shooting. "It took us a long time to get into it. Once we realized we were in a fight, I think we did well. We bunkered down and got stops."
Late in a game they would have regretted losing, the Jazz got a big 3-pointer from point guard Trey Burke and then another from Hayward before free throws and two stops made sure the escaped with a win.
Afterward, Jazz coach Quin Snyder wasn't going to nitpick.
"Sometimes part of the process is learning how to win," Snyder said. "There's plenty to be disappointed about. If you wan to look at [how] we didn't do this, we didn't do that, that's there. We'll look at that whether we win or lose. I think what did happen tonight was that Gordon made a terrific shot at a point where we could have easily lost the game."
The win moved the Jazz to 13-16 on the year, with plenty of things to fix, even given their rash of injuries.
But, again, it was better than the alternative.
"We'll take them any way we can get them," Hood said. "Regardless of by how much or how we do it, a win is a win. So we'll feel good about it."
Twitter: @tribjazz
- The Jazz were outscored 33-20 in the third quarter and needed a late 3-pointer from Gordon Hayward to escape with a win.
- Center Jeff Witehy had season highs in points (11) and rebounds (12) —
Storylines
R The Jazz are outscored 33-20 in the third quarter and need a late 3-pointer from Gordon Hayward to escape with a win.
• Center Jeff Withey has season highs in points (11) and rebounds (12).