Utah Jazz face another tough challenge Monday against the West-best Los Angeles Lakers

KISSIMMEE Fla., — The Utah Jazz were not happy when they went back to their hotel in the NBA’s bubble on Saturday night.

The Oklahoma City Thunder’s pesky defense, along with the Jazz’s odd insistence on playing nearly 48 minutes of iso-ball, sealed a blowout victory for the Thunder. It was a performance that didn’t sit well with head coach Quin Snyder or any of the players.

After the game, Snyder said this is an opportunity to drive home the things that went wrong and to take a real step back and look at where the team is. The problem there is that the Jazz don’t have much time to address the myriad problems laid bare on the court.

The Los Angeles Lakers, fresh off a whooping of their own by the Toronto Raptors on Saturday, will be ready and looking to exploit all of the Jazz’s weaknesses when they meet on Monday.

“We know what the Lakers bring, we know they’re talented, we know who’s on that roster and what kind of year they’re having,” Mike Conley said after the 110-94 loss to OKC. “For us, just continue to try to prepare every night, but more of an emphasis on establishing our brand of basketball and not worrying so much about how we’re going to defend or stop somebody else, but more so us coming out with a better mindset defensively and more aggression and more competing top to bottom.”

The Jazz absolutely have to come out with a better mindset on Monday because any of the difficulties the Thunder forced the Jazz to face will likely be the same as what they face against the Lakers.

One of the biggest issues on Saturday was the Jazz’s lack of size against Oklahoma City. On the defensive side, the Jazz were hard pressed to be able to close out on Danillo Gallinari shooting over the top of anyone closing out, they aren’t deep enough to have a defensive presence that can hang with lengthy forwards through 48 minutes and when they were met at the rim with crowds and blocks, they let the offense come to a grinding halt.

“Just got to be ready,” Donovan Mitchell said. “They’re a talented team and if we aren’t ready, they’ll be ready for us. Obviously they’ve got [LeBron James] and [Anthony Davis] but we’ve just got to play our game. We have to be ready for their length and their pressure on both ends of the floor.”

But, the Jazz were supposed to be ready for the length and pressure of the Thunder and they weren’t through almost the entirety of Saturday’s contest. That’s possibly the most concerning thing for the Jazz at this point. Even with the knowledge and scouting, the Jazz were quickly influenced away from the fundamentals they cling to.

Any hope for a reprieve or extended break will not be afforded to the Jazz, not in the bubble. Games will continue to come every other day and then it’s straight into the playoffs. These seeding games, of which six remain for the Jazz, are meaningful not just in the win-loss column but also as a proving ground before the postseason begins.

“Really, all these games mean something,” Conley said. “They’re all preparation for what’s to come.”

And again, things won’t be any easier for the Jazz once the playoffs come. Every team, every player and coach has sacrificed a lot to be away from their homes and families, and they want to be the ones walking away with the trophy. Lackluster efforts from the Jazz are not the path there and any sign of weakness is a sign that they aren’t ready.