The Utah Jazz went two straight years without beating a team atop an NBA conference.
That came on April 8, 2023, when the Jazz snuck a win against a Denver Nuggets team not totally focused on the regular season. But since then, the Jazz have had precious few wins against the NBA’s best teams — really, precious few wins of any kind.
That changed on Boxing Day, when the 24-6 Pistons came into the Delta Center as the Eastern Conference’s best team, and came out with a loss to the upstart Jazz, 131-129.
Unlike many NBA games, this result didn’t come with caveats. Both teams came in rested and nearly injury-free — only Walker Kessler’s season-ending injury notwithstanding. The Pistons spent the last two days in Park City; the Jazz were home as well. Both teams even shot the ball well from deep, 48% each — no shot variance here creating crazy outcomes.
And the Jazz, despite being out of a playoff position, came out victorious.
(Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune) Utah Jazz center Jusuf Nurkic (30) blocks a shot by Detroit Pistons forward Isaiah Stewart (28).
“Everybody was locked in. From shootaround to when everybody went home, and then when we came to the arena, we were prepared to win this game,” Jazz guard Keyonte George said.
It was the pairing of George and forward Lauri Markkanen that once again powered the Jazz.
The third-year guard is having a monster of a breakout season and is a real candidate for the Most Improved Player trophy; he had 31 points on Friday. The biggest two makes came in the game’s final 75 seconds, one a breakaway steal that pushed the Jazz’s lead to four with 1:14 left, the second the game-winning floater with 2.1 seconds left that finished as the game’s winner.
Markkanen, meanwhile, is staking his claim for the NBA’s All-Star Game. He’s the NBA’s 10th-leading scorer with 27.8 points per game, adding 30 in this one. His shooting threat, second only in the NBA to Steph Curry’s, helps George get open for his looks.
Remarkably, as the Jazz’s social media accounts pointed out on Friday, the combined points per game averages of George and Markkanen (51.8) would be the highest by any duo in Jazz history.
The most impressive aspect of Friday’s performance was how the Jazz were able to fare against the league’s second-leading defense. This season, the Pistons have allowed just 112 points per game, the Jazz beat that mark by 19.
“Our guards have been doing an amazing job with their decision making,” Jazz head coach Will Hardy said. “Keyonte and (Isaiah Collier) are, each night, making a ton of really good choices and getting their teammates great looks.”
They are recognizing each other’s strengths. When Brice (Sensabaugh) is open, we’re trying to get him a shot. When (Jusuf Nurkic) has a seal against the small, we’re trying to get him the ball,“ Hardy continued to explain. ”I think our team is doing a good job of seeing it right now, and it creates a lot of really good momentum in the locker room."
(Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune) Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen (23) goes to the hoop as Detroit Pistons forward Isaiah Stewart (28) defends him.
Momentum is one applicable word. Hope is another.
Those who run the Jazz — Hardy, president of basketball operations Austin Ainge, CEO Danny Ainge, and owner Ryan Smith — for the first time in a long time, have some hope that these pieces could add up to something real.
Markkanen and George’s two-man game has brought real verve to the Jazz, who now sport an above league-average offense overall. Ace Bailey (who missed the second half of the game due to a left hip flexor strain that the team did not yet know the severity of by Friday night) looks to have significant potential. Kessler, too, looks like a building block piece.
Certainly, that, by itself, is not anywhere close to enough. The Jazz will need to find other parts of their core moving forward. Depth is more important than ever in the NBA, and the Jazz still lack the no-doubt super-duper star that can carry average players forward.
They are as far away from the league-leading Thunder as Salt Lake City is to Australia. This game was the Jazz’s first win in five games, and their defense is still blindingly abysmal.
And to be clear, the plan is still to lose games on purpose during this season in order to keep their top-8 protected pick. Markkanen will sit sometimes, and George may have to as well. The team’s leadership intends to be in the lottery this season, not the play-in tournament.
But there might be something there to build on. I asked Collier what he took away from the fact the team beat the best of the East.
“That we’re capable,” Collier said.
Perhaps capable of something more.
