Jazz play-by-play announcer Craig Bolerjack calls Jazz swingman Joe Ingles “Slow-Mo Joe,” thanks to his, uh, lower-than-average top speed for a NBA player.
But the Rockets’ switching defense requires quick-twitch muscles to defeat. There’s a blink in which to attack the defense at the moment of the switch, and Ingles hasn’t shown the ability to make that happen.
In Sunday’s Game 1, Ingles made just one shot and took only four, never getting to the free-throw line. Those three points were wildly off his season averages: he normally contributes 12 points per game on 10 shots, acting as one of the Jazz’s most efficient players.