Three thoughts on the Utah Jazz’s 95-84 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies from Salt Lake Tribune Jazz beat writer Andy Larsen.
1. A much better performance from Jared Butler
Jared Butler was really off his game on Tuesday, then sat Wednesday’s game to rest. So how did he bounce back on Thursday?
Pretty well, all things considered. Butler scored 22 points on 8-21 FG, and added seven rebounds and seven assists to his tally. The point guard also only had one turnover in the contest. It was an especially good line when you consider that Butler started the game ice cold, 0 for his first six shots.
I don’t love getting 22 points on 21 shots, but it’s an improvement. In particular, Butler got 15 threes off, and while he only made four of them, he still has that nice stepback three that he can generate nearly anytime he wants to. It’s a weapon in both pick and roll and isolation, and if he can shoot it at a high enough clip — much higher than the 32% he shot last year — then he can find ways to stay on the floor.
He still isn’t getting to the rim, nor the free-throw line, with any regularity in the half-court. Truth be told, you just don’t see many point guards Butler’s size get all the way to the rim in the NBA — you need either elite athleticism like Donovan Mitchell or an elite finishing package like Kyrie Irving to really have much of a shot down among the trees. But he doesn’t have the free-throw grift of a Kyle Lowry yet right now, either.
What I liked most about his game tonight was the playmaking. He did get off the ball more quickly in this contest. As the Grizzlies shifted to protect the paint, he was adept at finding the corner 3-point shooter on the weak side. Then, when the Grizzlies started to anticipate that pass, he was great at feinting it, then finding his big men down low.
Defensively, he found himself in and out of the game. In half-court, on-ball, he’d spend a lot of effort defending his man, and relatively well, too. But he is quite small, and isn’t a reliable rotator or shifting defensive playmaker — again, think about how someone like Lowry makes a difference on that end.
All in all, it falls short of the efficient dominance that would be a really, really positive sign for Butler’s upcoming second year. But in this game, he showed off some tools he can build on for the week to come in Vegas.
2. Bruno Caboclo’s standout game
Caboclo made an impact in Wednesday’s Game 2, but was extremely up and down: for every big play he’d make, he’d commit a turnover (five in that game) or foul (seven in that game) that negated his prior impact.
But he was the Jazz’s best player in Game 3, scoring 17 points, adding seven rebounds and three blocks to a +1 plus-minus. He also was the player that gave the Grizzlies the most trouble — no small accomplishment against a Grizzlies team that figures to have four or five players who make their final NBA roster.
Caboclo’s best asset is his size: he stands at 6-9, with a 7-7 wingspan. He’s not really that fleet of foot, nor is he very skilled from the outside, so he’s mostly played center in the NBA over his last three seasons. In summer league, he played some five, but also played some power forward next to the likes of Tacko Fall and Kofi Cockburn.
And he just made some monstrous defensive plays. This was the best one, a highlight reel block on the Grizzlies’ Santi Aldama:
But also, this is a very nice pass in the short roll to find Cockburn down low, despite being cut off on his way to the rim.
If he can play that smartly — while also playing with as much force as he did, without floating in and out of the game — Caboclo’s going to be in really good shape to make an NBA roster again this year after a year off in the Brazilian league. He was MVP there with some absurd stats, so I think he’s got a chance to.
Could it come with Utah? I think it could, possibly. It depends what the Jazz end up doing with the center position: right now, they have Walker Kessler and Udoka Azubuike there, but Caboclo might legitimately be just as good as those guys at this moment in time. Do they go out and get DeAndre Ayton or Jakob Poeltl in the trade market? We shall see.
3. All-SLC Summer League team
Ah, why not. Let’s do an All-Salt Lake City Summer League team. Sure, there are only four teams with three games each, but that’s enough to put together a compelling starting five, right?
MVP: Josh Giddey, OKC. Despite still just being 19 years old — he doesn’t turn 20 until October — he had total control over the action to an incredible degree. The best skill was his passing: he averaged 9.3 assists per game in a 40 MPG situation, and showed off some awesome dimes in throughout. The great Seerat Sohi put it best: “He looks and plays like how I imagine Timothee Chalamet would play basketball.”
Chet Holmgren, OKC: Just ridiculously dominant for the first half of his first game, and still more than capable throughout. Yes, he’s scarily skinny, but he’s scarily talented too. He’s so good in drop-big defense, and has the timing already nailed. On offense, he got the ball way more than he did in Mark Few’s system in Gonzaga, and showed off quick pull-up threes in transition, Dirk-esque fadeaways, and lob and offensive rebound finishing at the rim. He’s going to be ridiculous.
Paul Reed, 76ers: The man Sixers fans wanted to play in the playoffs at center instead of the ancient DeAndre Jordan, Paul Reed had a strong showing in SLC. Reed led the league in rebounds per game, and finished second in points per game on over 50% shooting from the field. The turnovers were a problem for him, as he averaged 4.5 per game, but you figure “BBall Paul” wouldn’t make quite so many mistakes if he was in a smaller-usage role, as you’d expect him to be with the big-league Sixers.
Isaiah Joe, 76ers: Isaiah Joe hit a game-winning three in the first SLC Summer League game on Thursday, and it was enough to propel him to the top of the league in points per game. It continued a hot-shooting pair of games for him, as he shot 45% over his two games, making more threes than anyone else in the league.
Bruno Caboclo, Jazz: This was a tough choice between Caboclo and Kenneth Lofton Jr., two very opposite styles of big men, but both very fun to watch. In the end, Caboclo was my choice. He led the summer league in fouls, but finished second in blocks, fifth in points, and ninth in rebounds. Defensively, Caboclo was clearly superior. His terrific play on Thursday gave the otherwise undermatched Jazz a real chance to win their only game, though they fell short.
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