Zach Lowe: Snyder COY, Gobert DPOY
- Thread starter Shad
- Start date
Nice. That is a great article...
"Stevens and Casey would be deserving winners, and I bet one of them nabs it. So why Snyder? On Jan. 22, the Jazz hit rock bottom, falling to 19-28 after a blowout loss in Atlanta. Some idiot (me) even wrote it might be time to mothball the Rubio-Favors-Gobert starting trio.
The response from Utah coaches and players was unanimous: You're wrong. They were confident they would go on a run with Gobert back, and that the offense would open up. They were right, and they did it by executing the mundane things Snyder and his staff preach every day -- the dribble handoffs, flare screens, and ball fakes (Joe Ingles, baby!), each designed to gain a few inches so the Jazz might have a few feet when it comes time to shoot.
They tinkered with Rubio's shot habits, especially around the rim, and pushed him to stick with it. They found an able playmaker-defender in Royce O'Neale, and helped make him better. Gobert adds little touches to his rim-running every season.
Gobert is the keystone to Utah's absurd defense, but Snyder has instituted an impenetrable, mathematically sound scheme around him. He has made the most of Gobert. Lesser coaches have failed greater talents.
A weaker team, with a weaker culture, would have caved. We knew Utah was not that kind of team. It wouldn't have surprised anyone if they clawed back to .500 over their last 30-plus games. That doesn't get you Coach of the Year. But this? This 27-5 rampage to home-court advantage in the first round? This is championship-level dominance. The foundation -- even with Gordon Hayward gone, and Gobert missing a third of the season -- is even stronger than we thought."
"Stevens and Casey would be deserving winners, and I bet one of them nabs it. So why Snyder? On Jan. 22, the Jazz hit rock bottom, falling to 19-28 after a blowout loss in Atlanta. Some idiot (me) even wrote it might be time to mothball the Rubio-Favors-Gobert starting trio.
The response from Utah coaches and players was unanimous: You're wrong. They were confident they would go on a run with Gobert back, and that the offense would open up. They were right, and they did it by executing the mundane things Snyder and his staff preach every day -- the dribble handoffs, flare screens, and ball fakes (Joe Ingles, baby!), each designed to gain a few inches so the Jazz might have a few feet when it comes time to shoot.
They tinkered with Rubio's shot habits, especially around the rim, and pushed him to stick with it. They found an able playmaker-defender in Royce O'Neale, and helped make him better. Gobert adds little touches to his rim-running every season.
Gobert is the keystone to Utah's absurd defense, but Snyder has instituted an impenetrable, mathematically sound scheme around him. He has made the most of Gobert. Lesser coaches have failed greater talents.
A weaker team, with a weaker culture, would have caved. We knew Utah was not that kind of team. It wouldn't have surprised anyone if they clawed back to .500 over their last 30-plus games. That doesn't get you Coach of the Year. But this? This 27-5 rampage to home-court advantage in the first round? This is championship-level dominance. The foundation -- even with Gordon Hayward gone, and Gobert missing a third of the season -- is even stronger than we thought."
