During his first minutes on the floor in his NBA debut, Jazz guard Patrick Christopher, a D-League signing who has been with the team for less than a month, passed up an open look.
That would have upset his coach on any night — but especially Saturday night at EnergySolutions Arena.
Why?
"He couldn't have done any worse than anyone else," Utah Jazz head coach Quin Snyder said.
Saturday night's 88-71 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers will go down as a win for the Jazz, something rare enough for a team now 10-20 on the season.
But it sure wasn't a pretty one.
Gordon Hayward scored 15 points on a 4-of-14 shooting night. Trey Burke had 17, but took 18 shots to get there. Big man Enes Kanter's 10 points came on 4-of-13 shooting.
In total, the Jazz shot 35.7 percent from the floor, hitting on only four of their 23 attempts from 3-point territory.
If not for a terrific all-around performance from center Derrick Favors, who efficiently scored 17 points and tied season-highs with 15 rebounds and five blocks. He also notched three assists and three steals.
The Jazz hadn't played since Monday's win over the Memphis Grizzlies. The lowly Sixers (4-25) were coming off a lopsided loss the night before in Portland.
"I think the game reflected that on both ends," Snyder said.
Despite a poor shooting night, the Jazz built up a double-digit lead in the first half, thanks in large part to Philly's own struggles. The Sixers finished the night shooting 32.4 and point guard Michael Carter-Williams, the league's reigning rookie of the year, hit on just two of his 20 shots.
But Utah came out of the locker room as sluggish as they've looked all season. The Jazz started the third quarter 0 for 11 from the floor, going without a field goal for over six minutes.
"We were getting open shots," Favors said. "We were just missing shots we normally make. Layups, open three-pointers, open mid-range [shots]. We were just missing them."
The Sixers, meanwhile, mounted a comeback.
Philly's Robert Covington, who finished with 17 points, knocked down a three and followed up with another bucket. Tony Wroten, who had a game-high 20 points, stole the ball and tied the game at 46 with a layup.
And Philly's Jerami Grant gave the Sixers their first lead with a free throw before the Jazz finally answered with a basket at the 5:57 mark in the third quarter.
"Going into half-time, we felt, I wouldn't say comfortable, but we had a decent lead," Jazz point guard Trey Burke said. "In the third quarter, they turned it up."
Even midway through the fourth quarter, the Jazz looked in danger of letting a prime opportunity for a win slip away.
But that's when Favors turned it on.
"We had to get the game over with," he said. "We came out at first with a lack of energy, but when it came down to the fourth quarter, I think everybody just wanted to get the game over with. So we picked up the energy. Picked up the intensity."
Favors was fouled on a layup and converted the three-point play. On the next possession, he put the Jazz up eight with another bucket.
"We executed at the end of the game," Snyder said. "That was the one thing I thought for us you could take away as a positive."
Against the Sixers, it was good enough for a 17-point win.
But as the Jazz head back out on the road for a game against the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday, they know it won't be good enough again.
"I hope this game got the rust out from the Christmas break," Favors said. "By Monday we should have all the rust out and get back to hitting shots that we normally make."
afalk@sltrib.com
Twitter: @tribjazz
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah Jazz center Enes Kanter (0) gets tangled up with Philadelphia 76ers forward Robert Covington (33), NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philidelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah Jazz forward Derrick Favors (15) dunks the ball, in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philidelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah Jazz center Enes Kanter (0) gets tangled up with Philadelphia 76ers forward Robert Covington (33), in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philidelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Philadelphia 76ers guard Michael Carter-Williams (1) shoots over Utah Jazz forward Gordon Hayward (20), in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philidelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah Jazz head coach Quin Snyders shouts to his team, in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philidelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Philadelphia 76ers forward Furkan Aldemir (19) and Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert (27) go for a rebound, in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philidelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert (27) defends as Philadelphia 76ers guard K.J. McDaniels (14) tries to take a shot, in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philidelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Philadelphia 76ers forward Furkan Aldemir (19) strips the ball from Utah Jazz forward Joe Ingles (2) in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The P,hilidelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah Jazz center Enes Kanter (0) is triple teamed by the Philadelphia 76ers as he goes in for a shot, in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philadelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah Jazz center Enes Kanter (0) fakes Philadelphia 76ers forward JaKarr Sampson (9) and Philadelphia 76ers forward Robert Covington (33) in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philadelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah Jazz forward Derrick Favors (15) dunks the ball, in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philidelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah Jazz forward Derrick Favors (15) blocks a shot by Philadelphia 76ers forward Nerlens Noel (4), in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philadelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah center Enes Kanter (0) goes up for two points for the Jazz, in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philadelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah Jazz guard Trey Burke (3) takes the ball inside, as Philadelphia 76ers guard Michael Carter-Williams (1) defends, in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philadelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Philadelphia 76ers forward JaKarr Sampson (9) takes the ball inside, as Philadelphia 76ers forward Malcolm Thomas (11) defends, in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philadelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah Jazz forward Gordon Hayward (20) coals as at the Jazz build a big lead in the final minutes of the game, in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philadelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah Jazz forward Derrick Favors (15) wrestles the ball from Philadelphia 76ers guard Michael Carter-Williams (1), in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philadelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Jazz fans try to distract Philadelphia 76ers guard Tony Wroten (8) as he shoots a free-throw in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philadelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Philadelphia 76ers guard K.J. McDaniels (14) tries to shoot over the long arm of Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert (27), in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philadelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah Jazz forward Gordon Hayward (20) tries to get through Philadelphia 76ers forward Robert Covington (33) and Philadelphia 76ers forward JaKarr Sampson (9), in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philadelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah Jazz forward Gordon Hayward (20) tries to get through Philadelphia 76ers forward Robert Covington (33) and Philadelphia 76ers forward JaKarr Sampson (9), in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philadelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Jazz forward Joe Ingles (2), has a few words with Philadelphia 76ers guard K.J. McDaniels (14) after he was shoved in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philadelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Philadelphia 76ers guard K.J. McDaniels (14) shoves Jazz forward Joe Ingles (2), in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philadelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Jazz forward Joe Ingles (2), has a few words with the Philadelphia 76ers after he was shoved by Philadelphia 76ers guard K.J. McDaniels (14), in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philadelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Jazz forward Joe Ingles (2), has a few words with 76ers guard K.J. McDaniels (14), in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philadelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah Jazz forward Trevor Booker (33) shoots over Philadelphia 76ers forward JaKarr Sampson (9), in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philadelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah Jazz forward Gordon Hayward (20) is called for a foul as Philadelphia 76ers guard Tony Wroten (8) takes a shot, in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philadelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah Jazz center Enes Kanter (0) shoots over Philadelphia 76ers center Henry Sims (35), in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philadelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah Jazz forward Trevor Booker (33) scores for the Jazz, in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philadelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert (27) tries to get the ball past 76ers center Henry Sims (35), in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philadelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah Jazz guard Trey Burke (3) tries to keep up with Philadelphia 76ers guard Michael Carter-Williams (1), in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philadelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Philadelphia 76ers forward Nerlens Noel (4) takes the ball to Utah Jazz forward Derrick Favors (15), in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philadelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah Jazz center Enes Kanter (0) is called for a foul as he defends against Philadelphia 76ers forward Jerami Grant (39) in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philadelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah Jazz forward Gordon Hayward (20) gets pastPhiladelphia 76ers forward Robert Covington (33), in NBA action Utah Jazz vs. The Philadelphia 76ers at the EnergySolutions Arena, Saturday, December 27, 2014
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