After the Utah Jazz’s 105-104 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers at Delta Center on Sunday, head coach Will Hardy found himself in the spotlight for the wrong reasons. Following the game, Hardy addressed the controversial moment when he called a timeout just as Jazz guard Collin Sexton was about to take a game-winning shot.
“Obviously, we usually try to let players play in that situation,” Hardy explained. “I called for a timeout when Collin dribbled backward. It was loud, and I was hoping for a few more seconds than the 2.1 left on the clock. But it’s a tough situation.”
“My instinct is the second we start going backwards, you’re calling timeout,” said Hardy. “… It’s challenging because you can’t be certain of how things would have turned out if they hadn’t raised the alarm and everyone had continued to play. Collin might have completed it. At the end of the game, I informed Bull in the locker room that I had cheated him out of a moment. However, you enter such scenarios, we rehearse them, and you have clues and items you’re searching for. It didn’t work out for us.
Then, in the locker room, Hardy was questioned about Sexton’s response to that event.
Hardy stated, “Collin was very understanding with me in the locker room,” adding, “On the court, he was understandably frustrated, but that was in the heat of the moment, which I understand… I made my decision, and we all have our responsibilities in the end.”
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The viral moment can be viewed here if you missed it.
It appears that Hardy attempted to signal a timeout a moment or two ago, but none of the officials listened. Sexton was driving to the rim by the time the 36-year-old approached them from the Jazz bench and caught their eye. The timing was simply awful.
The Jazz fell to 4-16 on the season as Sexton was blocked by several Lakers players on the game’s last play. They currently have the third-worst NBA record after losing their last four games.
A semi-veteran like Sexton, who finished with 15 points, three rebounds, four assists, one steal, and one block against the Lakers, may not be with the Jazz for much longer as they are struggling this season. Sexton, John Collins, and Jordan Clarkson are the top picks to be traded out of Utah prior to the deadline, according to NBA insider Marc Stein. It might be beneficial for some competing teams to have them on board.
The next game the Jazz play is against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday at 8 PM ET at Paycom Center. Although it is also an NBA Cup game, the Jazz have already lost their first three games and are out of the running for the knockout round.
Anthony Davis believes he would have blocked Collin Sexton’s shot if the referee hadn’t blown his whistle. While the Lakers felt confident about the situation, the Jazz were left questioning what could have happened. In his postgame press conference, Davis was asked about the play and stated that, had the whistle not been blown, he likely would have blocked the shot.
“Collin got to the basket, and I was going for the block, but then I heard the whistle, so I stopped,” Davis explained. “I’m not sure if he would have made it, but I probably would have blocked it.”
After hearing the whistle, Davis did not try to block Sexton’s shot. Given his skill as a defender, I believe there was a high possibility he would have forced a miss there, but we’ll never know for sure if he could have blocked that shot had the timeout not been called.
