The Golden State Warriors didn’t want to let this happen. They faced a depleted Utah Jazz team. Albeit, the Warriors had some key absences. But the Jazz have been fined for trying to lose. On the other hand, the Bay has to win to give Stephen Curry a chance at bringing a storm with his return. That being said, a result can’t keep hanging over their heads.

Steve Kerr was blunt when analysing the loss. “Yeah, it’s a quick turnaround, you know with Chicago tomorrow night and we got to bounce back. So I’m not concerned about that,” the Warriors head coach said about the Jazz result. The bizarre part? Some fans felt Utah was once again looking to lose.

One fan pointed to some of Will Hardy’s questionable moves. Notably, the Jazz’s leading scorer for the game, Brice Sensabaugh, played just 3 minutes of the final quarter with Utah only having a single-digit lead. Breakout star Keyonte George didn’t play in the final quarter at all, even with the game tied at one point.

Hence, the speculation is understandable. But the Jazz, just like the Warriors didn’t seem to have enough control over their decisions. Kerr is forced to field untested rotations due to the long list of injuries. In Utah’s case tonight, George was listed as questionable with an illness before facing the Warriors. He still suited up and played 24 minutes. Sensabaugh tallied his most time on the floor since February 24.

So it doesn’t seem like the Warriors failed to prevail against a ‘tanking’ team. They just fell short in execution. Steve Kerr says, “This is the NBA”, so the Warriors can’t drown in their sorrows. They have to face the Chicago Bulls tomorrow. But before that, the experienced head coach did point to one glaring reason for the Warriors’ loss.

The Warriors shot themselves in the foot

This wasn’t necessarily a contest between a superior team and an inferior team. The Warriors’ offense lacked lethal firepower. Curry and Porzingis both were out. However, Kerr still felt the team got enough clean looks to win this game. The Warriors also limited their turnovers to just 9 while connecting on 33 assists.

What really changed the game was their disoriented defense. In discussions with the team, Kerr wanted to take away the “easy” attempts. However, the Warriors’ excessive fouling created an irrecoverable deficit.

“I just never felt like we got control of them defensively. You know, I mean, they scored 119 on us. 29 free throws. That can’t be the case… They made 27 points from the line. So, too much fouling. Too many plays where we were at a disadvantage based on whatever was happening offensively. So they outscored us by 13 points at the free-throw line. That’s the difference in the game,” said Kerr.

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The Warriors did hand over opportunities by fouling. The Jazz answered by missing just two of their 29 free throw attempts in this game. Both teams are dealing with adversity right now. However, the Warriors restrict the Jazz offense without sending them to the line. They also struggled with rebounding, playing without a high-calibre starting center.

Although Steve Kerr is looking ahead, the Warriors need to fire themselves up. With the Clippers winning tonight, they have officially dropped to the ninth seed. And Curry’s return is still a few games away. With the Play-In a likely pathway, the team needs to ensure being a 6/7 seed to get a second chance at making the postseason.