Truth be told, I didn’t think the Jazz played very poorly tonight, at least not in the first half. They shot 45% from three, got to the rim frequently, forced the Lakers into tough shots most of the time, etc. They were actually playing relatively good basketball.
And they still entered halftime down 18 points. To a team that was playing at altitude on a back to back, with a player (Anthony Davis) who was so sick and tired yesterday that he needed an IV at halftime. Yes, the Jazz didn’t have Mike Conley, but it doesn’t feel like he would have made a tremendous difference given his play this season so far.