It seems as if it has been pre-ordained by the basketball gods. The Golden State Warriors and San Antonio Spurs are on a collision course for the Western Conference Finals. The two best teams in the league, each jockeying for their place among the elite in NBA history, provide a match-up that could potentially rank as one of the greatest the game has ever seen. But if form holds at the bottom of the Western Conference Standings, one of the two teams will have to deal with the Utah Jazz. And they are looking to put an early end to everybody’s fun.
The Jazz have prided themselves on their defense this season. They are the second best defensive squad in the league, behind only the Spurs, allowing 95.9 points per game. Utah hounds perimeter oriented teams with their team speed and punishes interior based clubs with their shot blocking. It is a combination that has seen them make an improbable rise from the basement of the Western Conference to the playoffs without being a particularly efficient offensive bunch.
There are few teams in either conference that need to be game planned for as much as the Jazz. The top dogs are obvious, but no “middle of the road” team presents more problems for coaches than Quin Snyder’s men. Snyder had cut his teeth over his coaching career in some of the best situations an assistant could ask for. While completing graduate work, he was an assistant for Larry Brown with the Clippers. After playing for him as a student athlete, Snyder joined Mike Krzyzewski’s staff at Duke following his one year with the Clippers. He spent six years with Coach K before getting his first head gig at Missouri, making the Elite Eight in his fourth NCAA Tournament appearance. After his dismissal at Mizzou, he began his coaching sponge tour again in the professional ranks.
He found his way into the Spurs coaching tree with the D-League’s Austin Toros where he would compile the most wins in D-League during his tenure. He also produced the most NBA call-ups and won the Dennis Johnson Coach of the Year award in 2009. After two NBA assistant jobs with the 76ers and Lakers, he worked in Russia under current Spurs assistant and European coaching legend Ettore Messina. Snyder got his first NBA chance last season with the Jazz and progress was shown almost immediately.
The Jazz have already bested their win total from last year with two weeks to go. They are going to make the playoffs for the first time since the lockout shortened 2011-12 season. They are trending upwards as an organization, but the biggest feather in their cap would ultimately be besting either San Antonio or Golden State in the first round.
Now I am not saying that the Warriors or Spurs aren’t going to be heavy favorites in the first round against the Jazz. In fact, Utah hasn’t beaten either club in any of their meetings in the 2015-16 season. But while some of the final scores look like blowouts to the naked eye, Utah’s style of play made these two talented clubs work for their wins. And that is something that over a seven game series could swing a game or two in the underdog’s favor.
Utah is 24-14 at home this season. They hold opponents to just 92.7 points per game at the Vivint Smart Home Arena. They’ve given the Warriors two scares on their home floor. They were a Gordon Hayward halfcourt shot away, reminiscent of his shot against Duke in the NCAA Finals, of forcing OT in November. They lost in the extra frame just a week ago. It isn’t out of the realm of possibility that one play in each game could swing the Jazz’s way in a playoff series.
The Jazz get one last chance to prove themselves tonight as legitimate dark horse spoilers tonight as the Spurs come to Salt Lake City. Win or lose, they are going to show the country what to expect come the playoffs. I know I’ll have my eye on the game, and you should too if you want to see the team that could be throwing a monkey wrench into the national media’s NBA coverage come mid-April.