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Rudy Gobert: So I have a small apartment in Paris. So in the summer, I try to spend a lot of time in France too, because it’s the only time when I can really do it. But I also really like it there. I still have the house in Utah, so I have everything I need there. I have a half basketball court, a weight room, a pool. Before every season, I spend a few weeks in Utah.” Interviewer: “Okay. Because of the altitude too?” Rudy Gobert: “Yeah. So, for the oxygen…” Interviewer: “You’re always chasing performance, even on vacation.” Rudy Gobert: “Well, listen, I’m teasing, but yes, it’s true. That’s it. I really appreciate the place already, but on top of that, the fact that there are benefits that help me with my performance, my career, and my longevity—well, it’s all upside. It’s important.”
The three worst teams in the league - Indiana, Washington, and Sacramento - call the most timeouts. The Bulls and Pelicans are fourth and fifth in timeouts, and not much better in the standings. Meanwhile, the same is true on the other end. The teams that call the fewest timeouts include the Pistons, Rockets, Knicks, Celtics, and Thunder, five of the top six teams in net rating. They don’t often have to worry about their opponent going on a threatening scoring run. And then there’s the Utah Jazz. Utah has the fifth worst record in the NBA, is outscored by eight points per 100 possessions, but Head Coach Will Hardy hasn’t stepped in to stop the bleeding. In the past, Hardy has talked about the value of letting players learn how to handle pressure and communicate under duress while taking responsibility for fixing mistakes rather than being bailed out by a stoppage. He may also be scared from that one time he lost his team a game with a timeout.
Michael Scotto: The Utah Jazz are waiving Vince Williams, league sources told @hoopshype. WIlliams previously suffered a torn ACL and is out for the rest of the season. He’s averaged 7.7 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 3.0 assists in 21.3 minutes per game in four seasons with the Grizzlies and Jazz.
The Sixers return to the court Wednesday for the second half of their back-to-back against Utah, but Nick Nurse did not have an update on VJ Edgecombe's status. “Obviously took a hard fall,” Nurse said. “Going to check him out and get an update as soon as we can.” Tyrese Maxey, after being pulled from the game midway through the third quarter, spent the rest of the period with Edgecombe in the locker room. He said he’d call him Tuesday night for another update. “No one likes getting hurt, but he’s the same, smiling, happy,” Maxey said. “We had a good conversation. That’s my little bro. I’m going to check on him. I couldn’t continue the game without checking on him.”
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Discussing what it was like to play for the Jazz with reporters on Tuesday, Anderson noted that while he liked everyone in Utah, he wasn't a huge fan of their lose-first mentality, as he prefers to go all-out in pursuit of a win. “I don't even want to get into it, honestly. I had a lot of fun in the organization, and everybody in the organization was awesome,” Anderson said. “Obviously, you know, playing not-to-win games gets a little tricky and tough. I didn't enjoy it personally, but, you know, the staff, the players, I love the players. The staff is really cool, the people in the organization are awesome. Nothing bad to say about that.”
Vinny Benedetto: Cam Johnson is not optimistic he’ll be able to play tomorrow in Utah. Said the ankle has been an issue at different times throughout his career. He’s exploring different shoes and orthotics to try and get it right.
Pelicans forward Zion Williamson has another potential injury to deal with after leaving New Orleans' game at Utah in the second quarter Saturday night. The Pelicans announced Williamson would not return due to an injury to his right ankle in a game New Orleans went on to win 115-105. Interim coach James Borrego said Williams "tweaked the ankle," but didn't have an immediate update on severity of the injury. "Hopefully, it's nothing serious, and we'll have him back out there very soon," Borrego said. It's the latest setback for the oft-injured player who had already missed 16 games this season due to various ailments. The game against Utah was the two-time All-Star's 35th straight -- an NBA career-best for Williamson -- dating to Dec. 11, after he sat out five games with a right hip adductor strain.
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Artem Komarov: Zenit Saint Petersburg have signed Johnny Juzang through the end of the season. The 24-year-old American has spent the past few seasons between Utah and Minnesota.
Shams Charania: Utah's Lauri Markkanen will be re-evaluated in two weeks after an MRI on Thursday showed symptomatic hip impingement with associated inflammation and bone bruise, sources tell ESPN. Markkanen also twisted an ankle in practice Wednesday but those tests returned clean.
Numerous contacts with rival teams have suggested to me that the Pacers traded away too much for Zubac and could have waited until the summer to see what other options would have presented themselves, but I continue to hear that Utah is determined to retain restricted free agent-to-be Walker Kessler. The Pacers have long coveted Kessler, sources say, but I would counter the skeptics and say that there is tangible wisdom to Indiana getting its frontcourt business done now if its other preferred target is not likely to be available.
Now, since I can't rewrite history, let's take a look at what the lottery would've looked like last season if teams had simply replicated their winning percentages from before the break through the final couple months of the season. Utah would have dropped to No. 3 (from No. 1), and Philadelphia dropped to No. 7 (from No. 5) and Chicago and Atlanta moved up to No. 8 (from No. 12) and No. 10 (from No. 13), respectively. But while there was some minor movement in the standings, it didn't radically alter the standings.
