The 2015-16 Utah Jazz learned two critical lessons on March 30.
First, never leave Klay Thompson unattended. The All-Star sniper buried a game-tying triple with 15 seconds remaining, forcing an overtime period that allowed the Golden State Warriors to escape Salt Lake City with a 103-96 win.
But the second takeaway arguably trumped the result: The Jazz saw firsthand that they could hold court with the NBA's elite.
"I feel like we can play with them," swingman Rodney Hood said, per Aaron Falk of the Salt Lake Tribune.
Though last season's Jazz lost more games than they won (40-42), they weren't bullied by anyone. They split the season series with the Cleveland Cavaliers, took both the Warriors and Oklahoma City Thunder to overtime and came within two points of stopping the San Antonio Spurs.
Utah had the highest net rating of the 14 non-playoff teams (plus-1.6, 12th overall) despite enduring a laundry list of injuries: Former No. 5 pick Dante Exum was lost before the season to a torn ACL, and prominent rotation players Derrick Favors, Rudy Gobert and Alec Burks all missed at least 20 games.
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NBA
Article written by Zach Buckley
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