The Jazz had a lot going for them and plenty to play for late Monday night in Game 4, a contest to all but slam the lid on their first-round playoff series with the Oklahoma City Thunder.
They had figured out a way to sort of limit the lightning that accompanied the Thunder in the form of Russell Westbrook, Paul George and Carmelo Anthony, frustrating especially Westbrook, who started making silly guarantees after Game 3.
They were confident and connected, having an opportunity to spin the talented-but-disjointed Thunder into a further funk, burdened as OKC was by heavy expectation to make the most of their three-horned All-Star lineup while the valuable individual pieces were still in place.