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Oakland, Calif. • An adjustment in a playoff series usually comes a few games in. That gives a coach enough time to look at film, survey where his team can get better and make the needed move.
Quin Snyder's change took place in Game 1 of the Jazz-Warriors series on Tuesday. Instead of starting Boris Diaw at power forward, which he had for much of the regular season, the Utah coach started Joe Johnson.
Cosmetically, the move wasn't as drastic as it seems. Johnson played 22 minutes on Tuesday, after averaging 23.6 minutes during the regular season. Diaw played 20 minutes, where he typically averages around 18 minutes per game.
"We did it for a lot of different reasons," Snyder said. "There were a lot of things to think about."
Snyder told The Tribune he made the move to better match up with the Warriors defensively. He wanted Johnson's 6-foot-8 length to guard Golden State forward Kevin Durant, which freed Gordon Hayward to guard Draymond Green, simultaneously keeping Hayward from being exposed to foul trouble.
"They told me right before the game that I was going to be starting," Johnson said. "So I was ready to go. I want to be here to do whatever they ask of me. I thought we needed to move the ball better, and be able to shoot the ball better. But in terms of the rotation, I don't want to ask any questions."
Snyder said he'd probably stick with the move in Thursday night's Game 2, in a series where the Jazz are down 1-0.
Placing Johnson in the starting lineup produced mixed results. The veteran shooter went 4 of 10 from the field, although he was 3 of 6 from 3-point range, scoring 11 points total. He grabbed five rebounds and handed out a pair of assists. He certainly has had better offensive games in the postseason.
However, Utah's defense on Durant in Game 1 was one of its highlights in a night that was otherwise frustrating. Led by Johnson and Hayward, the Jazz held one of the best scorers in the NBA in check, limiting Durant to 17 points on 7 of 17 shooting. He did grab five rebounds and record five assists, but the Jazz made life difficult for Durant, consistently keeping a hand in his face, not letting him shake loose for open 3-pointers.
"The move was made for different reasons," Diaw said. "We wanted to be able to match up better with Durant, we wanted to have as many options as possible. We just want to be ready for whatever coach decides to do."
Johnson started a career-low 14 games this season, as he moved into a bench role for the first time in his career this season. But the move wasn't unprecedented. Against teams with dynamic wing play, Snyder has started Johnson. And Johnson was a starter early in the season, when Hayward was on the shelf with a broken finger.
If Johnson is in the lineup going forward, the Jazz will also have another shooter to take pressure off Hayward, Joe Ingles and George Hill.
"We're all here to support whoever is on the floor," Ingles said. "Joe and Boris, those are two great players and they bring different things and they are good in different ways. We just have to play our behinds off in Game 2 and figure out a way to play better in a lot of spots."
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