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Saying that nothing good came out of the Jazz's homecoming game Monday night against Detroit would be ignoring some positive developments, including nice efforts from Rudy Gobert and Rodney Hood, the return of Derrick Favors after a month's absence and Quin Snyder's approving my use of the word "homestand."
It's true. The coach who never likes to look too far ahead willingly observed that having six straight home games creates "an important stretch for us, no question."
If that pregame acknowledgment was a little victory for me, what followed was another tough loss for the Jazz. The team that excels in coming close enough to end up disappointed did its usual thing by rallying in an eventual 95-92 defeat.
"We didn't play very good for the majority of the game," Snyder said afterward.
And when "Jazz Fit Night" lasts exactly 6 minutes, 12 seconds, you just have to wonder whether this will become anything other than a lost season. The team's participation in the NBA's health promotion coincided with the return of Favors, but the good vibes of having 13 players dressed did not last long. Point guard Raul Neto took a blow to the head and left the court with concussion symptoms before Favors could even get into the game.
Detroit's Reggie Jackson proceeded to score 29 points, reminding everyone how the Jazz miss Dante Exum's defense against opposing point guards this season. Hood scored 23 points and Gobert posted 17 points and 17 rebounds, but the Jazz couldn't overcome their otherwise poor shooting, with Gordon Hayward and Trey Burke combining to make 4 of their first 25 attempts.
Here's the thing: Good teams win home games on bad nights. And the Jazz lost, dropping them to 12-10 in this building with Charlotte, Minnesota, Chicago, Denver and Milwaukee to come during the homestand.
The Jazz had better start taking advantage of the schedule, because they're in danger of letting No. 8 Sacramento get away from them in the Western Conference playoff race — while missing Alec Burks for another month or so.
Favors' comeback exceeded reasonable hopes, overall. Public address announcer Dan Roberts gave him a "welcome back" introduction and the crowd greeted him warmly, then Favors proceeded to look precisely like a player who had missed about a month's worth of games due to back issues. He fell down on his first post-up move, stood flat-footed as a Piston drove around him and missed his first free-throw attempt.
Favors' second-half stint went better, although his illegal screen cost Hayward a 3-pointer on a night when he really needed that shot, as Hayward went 7 of 23 from the field. Favors finished with 14 points and four rebounds in 19-plus minutes. The hopeful sign was having Favors and Gobert play together for the first time since a Nov. 30 loss to Golden State. How long ago was that? The Jazz took an 8-7 record into the game when they almost knocked off the Warriors; they're 19-25 now.
Snyder will welcome the rhythm of a home schedule for two weeks, with consistent practice and recovery time. "There's going to be an integration process, getting [Favors] back in," he said.
One standard explanation for any team's struggles during the 82-game schedule is that the first home game after a trip is difficult. Maybe so, but the Jazz had no excuses Monday. The team's Eastern swing was shortened to three games in two cities because of the snowstorm, so the Jazz enjoyed extra time off in advance of Detroit's visit.
That doesn't explain their 31.7-percent shooting in the first half. But as they usually do, the Jazz rallied. They came from 14 points down to give themselves a chance at the end, cutting the lead to 87-88 on Gobert's dunk with one minute left. But then Detroit's Kentavious Caldwell-Pope drove for a basket, Hood missed on a drive to spoil his otherwise phenomenal fourth quarter and Jackson hit a 3-pointer.
With one last shot to tie, Hayward missed wildly to conclude his rough night, in one of those games when few of the calls or no-calls seemed to favor the Jazz. But that's not a satisfying reason for another loss at home, where the Jazz need more wins and fewer explanations.
Twitter: @tribkurt