EMPTYING THE NOGGIN
• Solid win for the Jazz. Detroit is not good but the schedule gives you win you better take them and we will take this one.

• This season has had a little bit of everything. We talked today on twitter and sulia that the Jazz struggle with the line-up of Jefferson and Kanter and while Tyrone tried it for a little while he instead went with Jefferson and Evans to close the game. Yes Jeremy Evans and it worked great. Evans played a super game. He had 8 points, hit some jumpers, grabbed 7 rebounds and had a career high 5 assists. He still struggles at times with some defensive issues with his lack of size but he played very very well.

• Marvin Williams had as strong a game as he has had since the opening night. He was very active made plays and impacted the game with hustle, outside shots and played his usual good defense.

• The Jazz played with Burks, Hayward. Marvin, Evans and Kanter and the group moved the ball, ran the offense, made sharp cuts and played a nice brand of team basketball. This is how the game is supposed to be played. Guys go the ball and swung it rather than sitting on it, they got the ball and they either made a move took a shot or swung it in a hurry. It was rehreshing.

• I am surprised how much of a ball stopper DeMarre Carroll is when he is playing the in the starting line-up.

• The Jazz level of detail late in the game was very good and the offensive execution was strong.

• Mo Williams late game play was solid and he finished with 20. He also started the game with great tempo. He is outracing the other team for a few fast breaks a night with the Devin Harris 1 man blur fast break.

• Al Jefferson didn’t play well tonight but late in the game made a few huge buckets to fend off the run by the Pistons.

• Kanter linked his 5th straight good game for the Jazz. He is playing very well and a good portion of tonight was against Greg Monroe in the post which is a top line big and he used the scouting report, forced him right and played him very well. The scouting report has not always been Enes friend and tonight he showed nice growth by executing the game plan correctly.

• The Jazz will need to be better than this to win the huge road games coming up but this is a win and we needed that badly.

EMPTYING THE NOGGIN
• At least I got to text the Rockets announcer Craig Ackerman with “thanks for matching our bad loss with one of your own.”

• I am really surprised by tonight. I didn’t think this is what was coming. Without Carmelo and Amare this game was there for the taking and I thought we would be able to grab one to at least remove some of the bitter taste in our mouth from this road trip. However, we got the exact opposite. The Jazz held off the blow out twice, once in the first quarter, once in the 2nd and then when it hit them in the 3rd they had nothing left.

• The Jazz were just terrible tonight. The pick and roll defense early was awful. The offense was almost exclusively perimeter based and they lacked energy. I think this surpasses the Houston home game in terms of performance.

• I am surprised most that there was such a lack of urgency to the performance. The only explanation is the mental and physical aspect of the road trip left the Jazz with nothing in the tank. I don’t like that angle and not one who wants to give them that out but I would say this team has consistently battled when the have been backed up on a wall so maybe that is why they didn’t have it physically or mentally.

• Our interviews at halftime from the coaches always mention they need to be “tougher” they need to “hit first” This team is becoming softer as the season goes on.

• Hard to single out anything in this game. The pick and roll defense to start the night was miserable. They really wanted to take away the lobs to Chandler and so Jefferson was staying tethered to Chandler off the pick and roll but our guards were completely unable to stay with their guards. Maybe Jeffferson needed to show a bit more but the guards have got to shoot through that better.

• The Jazz are 0-3 since Mo Williams returned. He has not been good but I don’t think I would put it there just yet because with a play or two in the first two games including one or two of his own and we would be 2-1 with him and probably be over playing his roll in that as well.

• Kanter hit his first Nba three on the final play of the game – he told me next year that will be part of his game.

• Randy Foye is struggling badly. He is shooting 25% or so since the all-star break.

• I can’t imagine what it is like to be a professional athlete and have the other teaming fooling on you. The Knicks were goofing all over the floor and I would have to imagine that is one of the most embarrassing things that could ever happen as an athlete.

• I don’t think we are done. Too much basketball yet to be played. I would hope that we see a level of urgency from these guys over the next few weeks. Bodies may be failing everyone a bit, Jefferson with his ankle, Mo is very sore from coming back and now Paul’s knee so that may be restricting their ability to do that but I think we will see the same fight they have shown all year.

• My largest concern is that with all the free agents we have that there is no connection from the players to the situation and the franchise but again that would be very inconsistent with how any of these guys have approach the season.

EMPTYING THE NOGGIN
• I have no idea where to start, what to say and how to explain the week that this has been for the Utah Jazz and Jazz Nation.

• We are in an outcome oriented business so they all count as losses. On the other hand we have played three straight road games that went to the wire and as silly as that sounds that is a big step in the correct direction considering how we were playing on the road.

• We just aren’t making the play late in the game. Tonight we had two chances on the offensive end to win the game. Jefferson missed a 17 footer and Gordon missed the game winner. If we make either of those plays we win. If Mo hits his shot in Cleveland, if Kanter hits the put back in Milwaukee and if Jennings misses, Bellinili misses or Irviing misses once. It is unreal.

• If we grab a defensive rebound in Cleveland or Chicago we win. This has been an awful 4th quarter defensive rebounding team all year. Why I have no idea. Sydney Lowe sad we have to hit first and that may be it. That our guys don’t hit first in those circumstances.

• I loved Al Jefferson tonight. After falling apart to close the 2nd quarter the Jazz need a little desperation and he brought it. Al played with incredible fire in the 3rd quarter tonight and willed the team back into the game. He played with awesome passion and the team followed. This is what this team needs and he brought it. It was one of the best leadership nights I have seen out of Al Jefferson. Then late in the game he answered the offensive needs of the team again.

• Derrick Favors was terrific on Boozer tonight and made the defensive plays that had to be made tonight. The Jazz held the Bulls to below 25% shooting in the 2nd half. They rotated great on the defensive end. They closed on shooters, they got loose balls, they forced turnovers. Everything we have wanted from them expect clearing the defensive glass.

• Jazz closed with Jefferson, Favors, Marvin, Gordon and Mo. This is the line-up I thought we would live by all year when the season started. Obviously, nothing this year has happened as anticipated this year. Marvin and Gordon have great length on the wings and Favors patrols the lane. I really like that group.

• Mo Williams had a terrible night. Probably not a surprise. He was sore after the first game and he never got it going tonight.

• I will admit when Jamaal came in the game I thought it was nuts instead of Alec and the craziest thing is it worked. Against the Bulls pressure defense Jamaal did a great job reading the defense making passes to where they needed to go, anticipating movement before it happened and he played very well. He is just not a good shooter at this point in his career and really never was a great one. The Bulls defensive system forces you to anticipate where things need to go and Tinsley was the one doing that better than any of the other guards.

• Kanter had another very good game.

• Hayward’s look at the end is about as good a look as you can hope to get in that circumstance and he just missed it. He had it there, he had air space, he had gotten himself free but he missed it.

• Marvin Williams played the game we have been hoping for him all season – a double double – 10 rebounds to go with 14 points. He played good defense on Deng and he was active and cutting on the offensive end.

• Really the Jazz were very good tonight. Guys played well, they played hard. They had a lapse to end the 2nd quarter and the coaches altered things in the 2nd half. The jazz defended the shot great, we got a ton of loose balls and they made a lot of plays but just 1 short.

• Lastly it was a pretty awesome game – No team lead by more than 5 18:20 and the game was within two possessions for the final 20:00 minutes. The first quarter only had two possessions the entire quarter outside of 1 possession lead and 3 for the first 9 minutes of the 2nd quarter. That is strong basketball.

• I have no idea what happens next. If they play like they did tonight and for the Cleveland game and the Milwaukee game the rest of the year they are going to win a bunch of games. Will luck come back on our side? Will we make a few plays in the next realm of close games? Will the ball bounce our direction? Will this be the week we look back and remember as the week we missed the playoffs?

• Talk to you from New York.

EMPTYING THE NOGGIN
• This is a terrible loss. No other way to slice it. Coupled with the Lakers comeback in New Orleans and the playoffs look like they are in serious jeopardy. To collapse like this is awful. You can’t lose these two games when 1 game is going to decide the playoff outcome. I just feels like things are slipping away the wrong direction.

• The Jazz lead this game by 8 with 2:46 left and made every mistake they had to lose the game. If they had not made one of them they win. Millsap got caught under the basket and got blocked by CJ – Irving misses with 2:00 left but the Cavs get the rebound and Irving gets fouled and making 1 of 2 free throws. Jazz by 5 with 2:00 left. Jazz run 13 off the clock and Hayward gets fouled – all looks good still but he makes 1 of 2. Jazz up 6 with 1:47 to play. Irving makes 2 free throws and then Mo Williams tries to hit the home run shot and be a hero in Cleveland on his first game back and with 8 on the shot clock misses a three – Irving misses a layup but the Cavs get another offensive rebound and Irving scores plus a foul and it is suddenly a 1 point game with 1:07 left. Hayward turns it over under duress in the front court, Ellington dunks and the Cavs lead it by 1. Jazz have a chance with :56 seconds left and Foye tuns it over stepping on the baseline. Foye plays great defense on Irving and he misses and the Jazz still have a chance but Mo Williams has a layup to take the lead with 4.9 seconds left and it misses. I don’t know how. Just crushing.

• The killer is this wipes out a night of really strong performances. It felt like the jazz were going to have a going away road win. I can’t recall the last time they had a going away win on the road if they have this year.

• Kanter was terrific this evening. He made two plays that make me begin to believe is he going to be a great offensive player. I have always thought he was going to be Carlos Boozer offensively and tonight I am almost sure of it. He made two plays off the pick and roll from Hayward, one of them was on the right wing where he stopped and hit a 15 foot jumper and the most impressive was on a play in the lane where going full speed he was able to stop in the lane and make a shot without going out of control. On another play he kept the ball up high and finished at the rim. Kanter was the best player on the floor for most of the time he was on the floor tonight.

• In Milwaukee Kanter finished and tonight Favors did. I didn’t talk to Tyrone Corbin after the game but I have to believe they are related. I would think that Favors closed tonight in some way in reaction to not closing against Milwaukee. Not sure how it would have impacted the outcome but neither night worked out. Seems like larger issues were at hand but tough that neither night worked out.

• The growth of all the young players has been incredibly impressive the last few nights. I love what I am seeing out of Burks. His rebounding is such an invaluable skill for this team. He playing the game at such a good pace and letting the game come to him. Every now and again he forces it and it is a mistake but he is doing it rarely enough that it is ok because it works some and it keeps the defense honest. His jumper has been solid

• In Milwaukee lots of the mistakes were related to inexperience tonight I didn’t see that at all. Frankly, all night the mistakes were made by the veterans. Guys just blew it on the game plan. Jeff Hornacek told us at halftime that guys were just forgetting what the game plan said. For example Tristan Thompson only goes right and yet we continually let him go right all night.

• Mo Williams was 0 for 7 in the second half

• Foye guarded Irving down the stretch. Irving shot 2 of 6 – he hit a 15 footer and got 2 on a 2nd chance, he also went 4 of 5 from the line. He is as good as they come late in games.

• Derrick had a Tyson Chandler night tonight – 12 rebounds, 6 points and 4 blocks.

• Gordon handled being the load of the offense much better tonight with 25 points and 7 assists. That is a big time night.

• Weird thing about the night is not once did I think about Al and that he wasn’t playing and then went it got to Al time the team was completely lost. Would they learn without him? I love the way the team played for 44 minutes tonight. The game had lulls and they missed parts of the game plan but the effort was strong and they played a great team game but late they missed the control of the game. They needed one play and they couldn’t make it.

• Hope this is not the night we look back on when the season is over.

EMPTYING THE NOGGIN
• Heck of a game. Jazz played really well. Other than the 3rd quarter, they defended great, they battled and they were able to answer about everything thrown at them. Really in a game like this when there are over 100 possessions on each side and you lose by 1 point it is somewhat luck. This game was as even as it comes. That is a huge improvement on the Jazz past road performances.

• There were a ton of great performances. However, just too many crucial mistakes that swing a one point game. DeMarre lost JJ twice in overtime, Millsap missed a free throw, a few loose passes and too many turnovers.

• The youth of this team is making huge strides. Hayward is carrying the largest load and at times you can tell it is a lot to ask for him to carry that burden. Tonight he was 3 for 16 and without Al the defense zeroed in on him and it was tough to get a look and with the interior defense of the Bucks he couldn’t get his usual action at the rim. To his credit he still scored 13 points on 16 shots which is pretty good for a 3 for 16 shooting night.

• Favors was a beast. He had 15 points and 9 rebounds. The 9 rebounds were helped by 5 offensive rebounds most if not all were his own miss. He was awesome around the rim. He hit one jumper but he was relentless and he played without getting in foul trouble. He was really good. When he plays he is going to get his numbers every night. He is so athletic and so talented.

• Kanter linked a second straight night of success. He played the final 17 minutes when the Jazz came back from an 11 point deficit and he had 12 points, 7 rebounds on 4 of 6 shooting in the 4th quarter and the overtime. He finished with a second straight double double 18-10 in 31 minutes. Pretty awesome.

• Burks has made enormous strides. He has become the player I loved out of the draft. He is hitting his outside shot enough that he is able to create space on the drive and he is finishing more and more and he is getting to the line. He is running the pick and roll much better than earlier this year. That is where his growth the best. He also is playing the point without the help of other ball handlers. His growth is terrific for a 2nd year player. 6 turnovers is too many but he will get that figured out. He is closing big minutes of games under huge pressue and is handling it very well.

• The idea of three starters not scoring is unreal. Watson, Foye and Marvin are way out of synch. Watson insertion into the starting line-up has not worked but that ends with Mo returning on Wednesday (every indication he will). Marvin was much better with Mo and we can only hope he gets going again and Foye is just in a slump. The question is what to do about it. They all have to play (maybe not Watson with Mo back) but how do you use them. If you bench Marvin he is now playing with the younger group where DeMarre has fit so well. If you start Hayward when Jefferson and Mo are back he never sees the ball. There is not a right answer right now. What they are doing right now is not good but if they were coming off the bench it wouldn’t help either.

• In regards to Favors not playing the final 17 minutes Kanter played very well that is the group that brought the game back and Corbin let them run it out. Hard to argue Favors would have been better than Kanter. Kanter was very good. Millsap is gaming it for the team and he made a ton of plays late and gave the coaches an offensive option to go to where otherwise they wouldn’t have had one. The decision was Kanter or Favors and Ty let the guys that were playing well roll. Hard to argue with that. Is Favors pissed? I am sure he is. I would be anyone would be. However, this is not only about keeping Derrick happy. He was great tonight and he deserved to play the final 17 minutes but so did Kanter who was playing well and so did Millsap who has been the warrior all year long. Something had to give and it was Favors minutes. Tough situation. Not sure what the right answer was.

• Lets dig deeper. When do you bring in Favors. Corbin could have pre-decided that he was going to Favors at the 5 or 6 minute mark of the 4th. At that point the Jazz were on a 7-0 run and Kanter had scored 4 of the 7. So Corbin past on that moment and the sub could have de-railed the run . Then the Jazz continued the run and tied the game with 4:40 left on a 14-4 run. Do you make the sub then? This group has been pretty strong. The Jazz continue the run to take a 3 point lead. So are you making the sub there? Then you could have made the change in overtime but the group that was on the floor had just outscored the Bucks 34-24 are you really making a change?

• I get bitching for the sake of bitching after a tough loss but really when you dissect this nothing here that was decided was strange, idiotic or any other of the vulgar words on my twitter timeline.

• Jazz played a really strong game. They energy was good. The ball movement was strong. The defense felt better, not sure the numbers will back that up. They were in it down the wire on the road which has not been the case in some time. They played a good game and the young guys are making huge strides. Despite the loss a lot of good things about being a Jazz fan right now.

EMPTYING THE NOGGIN
• ENES KANTER – 23 points and 22 rebounds. Incredible night for Enes. He was far and away the best player on the floor. He has done this at every level he has ever played and tonight he did it again at an NBA level. Everything about this game is going to fall under the caveat that it was against the Bobcats but 23-22 is 23-22. Awesome performance.

• The Jazz held the Bobcats to a season low 9 points in the 1st quarter a season low 24 points in the first half. So though the Bobcats are terrible on offense, 29th in the NBA, the Jazz made them worse than they had been all season low.

• The Jazz defense was athletic. They moved well, the cut off angles, they got into passing lanes. They covered the middle of the floor. It was a great sight to see. Favors and Kanter have been great defensively together all season, usually against second tier grouping and tonight was no different as to who they were playing but these guys did what they were supposed to do all night on the defensive end and it was re-freshing.

• Alec Burks played very well on Kemba Walker and the help defense was very strong.

• Favors defensive effort was good, he needs to learn how to stay on the floor without getting in foul trouble.

• The Jazz played with strong energy. Enes Kanter plays extremely hard every possession and it seemed to carry over to his teammates.

• The most pleasing part of the night was how well Jeremy Evans played. Again, the Bobcats don’t have anyone who can expose his lack weight but he took jumpers and he made some jumpers. His game still has holes, but it was great to see him take advantage of the opportunity.

• In summation, it was a great night. Kanter was out of this world but on the other end he should be against Biymbo and Mullens and Diop. It takes a tremendous level to put up 23-22 against any NBA talent so for that the praise should flow, but this does not mean he can do this every night or that he is ready against top tier defensive units.

• The question going forward is did Kanter earn the ability to continue his strong stretches of basketball rather than have the automatic substitution.

• My gut is the defense performance of this group is far more replicable than the offensive effort of Kanter.

Regardless of all this it was great to see these guys get extended minutes and show this level of promise. Off to the road we go.

Emptying the Noggin
• I don’t have a lot tonight. This is a really bad loss and a really bad performance. If this continues this is not a playoff team. Already having lost two in a row this team had to have a better presence and a defensive mindset.

• The game was lost in the opening part of the 3rd quarter when the Jazz missed their first 8 shots and didn’t score for the first 4:30. When the ball didn’t go through the hoop the defense faltered and the Hawks got the rim with ease.

• Jefferson had a nice offensive line but his outing was not enough to win games.

• Jefferson got hurt as well and was in a boot when he left the arena

• The defensive numbers won’t look terrible because the Hawks 4th quarter only scored 20 points but they had 30 after 1, 56 at the half and 82 after 3.. Until they shot 8 of 19 in the 4th they had shot above 50% in every quarter.

• Favors line is great – 17 points, 15 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 blocks. Josh Smith did finish with 24 and 14 on the other end but he got some of that on Kanter. Favors racks up the numbers and you wonder what he would average if he got this time every night. Not sure it would make this team better from what I saw tonight but Favors is going to get big time numbers whenever he plays.

• The Jefferson/Favors tandem has not defended this year.

• PG play was very poor tonight

• That is enough – It was a bad night. It does no good to go down the line and talk about how everyone didn’t play well. This team is on the ropes right now. It will be interesting to see the status of Millsap and Jefferson coming up on Friday and on the road trip. No time for a slump.

• The Hawks are much better than people realize. They are 15-13 on the road. Al Horford may be the best center in the NBA right now. Jeff Teague has played better. They play hard.

EMPTYING THE NOGGIN
• Heart wrenching loss. This one sucks. But I am not entirely sure why. The team played hard. They battled back from a deficit. They didn’t blink for most of the night. We had 7 ties and 2 lead changes in the 4th quarter by itself. The game was a 1 possession game for the final 9:55 of regulation and for 3 minutes of overtime. It was a fierce game and the Celtics made a few more plays.

• They made a ton of mistakes but I think that is when playing someone as tough as the Celtics does to you. They tax you physically and mentally all game. Garnett is holding, grabbing, moving on picks, doing everything he can possibly get away with, he hits you with every elbow he can, with every shove that is there and you have to be able to hold it together. Pierce is doing the same in his subtle way. It must be infuriating to deal with that all game.

• The C’s have the Hall of Famers to make plays late. It almost felt unfair. We are trying to get looks for Hayward, Burks and who knows and they are milking one guy who is 15th all time on the scoring list and another guy who is 21st all time. They made every play. Pierce was unreal late on the offensive end and then when called upon Garnett hit the big shot. You knew Garnett was going to get about every rebound. They just don’t make a mistake late. They have been there so many time.

• Paul Pierce has played in 293 that were within one possession in the final 24 seconds, Jason Terry 263 and Kevin Garnett 258 — Hayward has been in 44 and Burks has been in 13. Take it one step further – Games within 4 in the final 2 minutes – Jason Terry has played 370, Kevin Garnett 371 and Paul Pierce 410 whereas Hayward has played in 53, Carroll 23 and Burks 16.

• I can’t explain how much that matters.

• The bummer tonight was the amount of mistakes that were made defensively, missed switches, misunderstandings about what was run, two guys chasing a player in the back court on the final inbound play leaving Courtney Lee wide open. That stuff has to go away. I assume experience does it but some of these guys shouldn’t make those kind of mistakes.

• The Celtics pressure defense dictated the game for the key stretches. The third quarter they knocked the Jazz out of everything they were doing and then in the overtime on a bunch of big possessions the Jazz couldn’t get into anything they wanted to get to.

• The Celtics took Jefferson out of the game.

• Marvin Williams reappeared and played well tonight. Jazz started Earl Watson to increase energy and tempo and it worked and it got Marvin going. He finished with 15 pts and played super defense on Paul Pierce.

• Jazz played DeMarre Carroll on Pierce and Hayward was switched over on him a few times. The defense 1 on 1 was pretty strong and he nailed shots. At times it seemed they were too worried about Garnett and it allowed Pierce to get free. Other times there was some confusion but overall they battled and Pierce made tough shots. He has been there done that.

• Gordon Hayward had 26 –he is averaging 22 since coming back from the injury.

• Burks had 5 rebounds. He is averaging 5 a game over the last 5 games. His lack of natural point guard skills and feel was exposed more by the Celtics than anyone had so far. He had some nifty drives and his ability to try to make a play was needed.

• Tough to win games in the NBA and this night shows it.