In the second match in three days between the Jazz and the Sons, Utah came back with a big win, 111-92.
The big story was that this was Chris Paul’s first game with the Sun, and Jalen Smith was entering the starting lineup to replace Cameron Johnson.
Paul immediately felt his presence, especially to Dandere Ayton on the pair.
Although Monty Williams said he would try to keep Chris Paul around for 12 minutes, it looked like the veteran guard could handle something else, as he scored eight runs before the end of the first half and played a total of 18 matches. .
Joining the new pair in the starting lineup, Smith showed off a lot of offensive skills that James Jones appreciated after the draft. Not famous for his face-up game in Maryland, Smith pulled it out several times against the Jazz.
However, when the second half started, Utah caught fire. The Jazz took a 15-point lead in the third half. After a game in which Williams criticized his team’s defense, some of them reappeared in Game Two, with a siege defense and a lot of open spots.
Bojan Bogdanovich in particular got what he deserved. This is where the Sun Jai Jai Crowder will be really happy to get back. They don’t have any big scoring forwards yet.
Sun’s mistakes made themselves a little bit, with missed shots Utah got a rhythm in the change and ordered them to engage conditions.
Crossing the Utah race, Paul checked out one last time and the cheating tie-Shawn Alexander came into the game.
It wasn’t just Utah making shots in the second half. They were also pushing their size in when Rudy Gobert grabbed 17 boards and when Derrick Favres found him, Backup took revenge on his own three offenders. Not surprisingly, Ayton received some coaching from Paul when he checked in in the third quarter.
Williams put together a group of four starters to start the fourth quarter, in addition to Jevan Carter. To me this coach was sending a message: last time you were on the floor to make a third start fix the big lead left.
The results came. The Sun added a quick 8-0 lead to Mickel Bridge Thrace and forced the Jazz to take a break. Although the lead was cut to just 18 after that race, it was good that Paul led that unit in response to Utah’s dominance. Can’t just roll.
Beginners spend a short time before hanging up their towels at night. This team will not be happy with this performance, that’s for sure.
