How Injuries Can Save the Jazz's Season

17 Seconds into yesterdays game between the Utah Jazz and Los Angeles Clippers, Jazz fans were faced with a situation they have become all to familiar with the past couple of years; their star player, Rudy Gobert fell to the floor grabbing at his left knee and was assisted off the court with the help of teammates. Before this point Gobert had been a defensive powerhouse. Gobert ranks first in the NBA in blocks at 2.6 per game, second in defensive wins shared in addition to ranking second in the NBA in shooting percentage and fourth in rebounds. Case in point, the Jazz need Gobert, so when he was unable to walk off the court under his own power, to many fans it appeared as if the Jazz were done, a mere 17 seconds into the first playoff game Utah has played in since the 2011-2012 season.

To Utah fans however, it was a little different. Jazz fans are used to watching their injury plagued team defy to odds and exceed the expectations. This year alone the Jazz have been forced to use 23 different starting line ups due to injuries to several key contributors. Alec Burks has missed 35 games, George Hill has missed 33, Rodney Hood has missed 23 games and perhaps the key to the Rudy Gobert injury is the fact that starter Derrick Favors has missed 32 games throughout this season. Try to name the third and fourth string big men for the Clippers or for the Hawks. For the common fan it's difficult to think of a team's back up Centers or Power Forwards. But for Jazz fans, Jeff Withey and Boris Diaw have become house hold names as injuries to Derrick Favors have opened the door for Diaw and Withey to average a combined 26 minutes per game. So when Gobert went down Saturday night Jazz coach Quinn Snyder knew what to do, he's been doing it all season. Diaw, Withey and Joe Johnson all saw their minutes increase with Gobert out of the line up and

each was able to step up in a big way especially Johnson who played a total of 31 minutes, many of which at the stretch four position as Favors filled in for the absence of Gobert and poured in 21 points, none of which were bigger than the last two, a game winning shot at the buzzer. So don't count out the Jazz quite yet, they'll be able to overcome injuries, after all... they've been doing it all season.