Jazz Rookie Sounds Off on Limiting Jayson Tatum to 15 Points
It's hard enough being a rookie in the NBA. But being tasked with guarding one of the league's elite scorers, and holding him to half his nightly average, is significantly more difficult.
But that's exactly what Ochai Agbaji did in the Utah Jazz's 118-117 win over the Boston Celtics on Saturday night. Agbaji wasn't the only Jazzman tasked with guarding Celtics All-Star Jayson Tatum, but the rookie's defense was fantastic.
After the game, Agbaji detailed what he and the Jazz did to make life so difficult for Tatum, who only finished with 15 points on 4-for-12 shooting (33.3%).
“Just throwing different looks collectively," Agbaji said modestly. "It was a collective effort. I think helping each other and talking to each other—all the communication that goes into guarding All-Stars, it’s just a lot. But it was good.”
It's been tough for Utah to weather the storm of missing starting guard Jordan Clarkson in seven of the past eight games, but as it so often goes in the NBA, a veteran's absence creates a vacuum that a prepared relief player can fill. Agbaji has done that, with gusto, offering the Jazz some great shooting, especially in the clutch, and significantly better defense than what Clarkson brings.
“Obviously, he’s a good player," Agbaji said of Tatum, "[he] sees a lot of different looks every single night, but just making it more difficult on him. Talking to each other and helping each other out, like I said.”
Finishing with 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting (54.5%), Agbaji was obviously quite reluctant to take all the credit for what was a tremendous team effort to limit Tatum. And while it's true that Jazz coach Will Hardy's new zone looks on defense played a role, it was often the rookie tasked with guarding the All-Star at the point of attack.
Speaking of reluctance, at the risk of revealing any state secrets to Utah's ever-watchful NBA rivals, Coach Hardy didn't seem too thrilled to dish on the details of his zone looks when he was asked to explain it point-blank after the game.
"Well, it is a zone. I’m not going to get into too many specifics as to what exactly it is, but there’s a lot of switching in it," Hardy said. "And it’s something that we worked on earlier in the year for a little bit. I was talked into bringing it back and giving it some more love by a couple of senior counsel members on the team."
It's been great to see the development of Utah's young players, especially the rookie tandem of Agbaji and Walker Kessler. Agbaji sank a had-to-have-it three-pointer in the clutch, while Kessler blocked a Grant Williams would-be game-winning shot in the closing seconds, securing the victory for the Jazz.
Utah's rookie duo has been among the NBA's best since March began. As a former National Champion with the Kansas Jayhawks, Agbaji knows a thing or two about elevating his game in the month of March. But how have he and Kessler managed to pull it off in the NBA?
“Confidence. I think it comes with confidence and a lot of experience," Agbaji said. "I think Walker, he’s had a great season. He’s dominating right now and that just shows. So that experience and confidence really grows.”
Coach Hardy was grateful for the victory, but after the game, he seemed even more excited about the experience his young team is getting on the court. Against a high-quality opponent like Boston, to be faced with the clutch-time situations Utah was, and still make the necessary plays to come out on top, such victorious experience is invaluable.
“It’s priceless experience for them," Hardy said. "You can’t manufacture this in a training setting, no matter how high we try to make the stakes at a practice, not matter how loud we turn the music up. You can’t simulate coming down the stretch in a game against one of the best teams in the NBA, with a loud arena—the pressure, the scramble, the communication—you can’t simulate that."
It'll be fun to see where this goes for the Jazz, but it was great to see the home team take care of business vs. Boston. In the first of a four-game homestand, Utah has to make as much hay as possible while the sun is shining.
"My favorite part is looking at the score by quarter is that the Celtics scored less and less each quarter as the game went on," Hardy said. "I thought our defensive intensity picked up. Our communication was good."
Next up, the Jazz host the Sacramento Kings on Monday night in Salt Lake City.
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