We know it's his left shoulder obviously and they've taken him to get some imagining to figure out exactly the extent of the injury. – Utah Jazz coach Quin Snyder
SALT LAKE CITY — Utah Jazz coach Quin Snyder was somber when he entered the interview room after his team’s 112-101 victory over the Phoenix Suns Friday night, about 15 minutes later than he usually does after a game.
It had nothing to do with his team’s performance, which was pretty good on the whole. Rather it was the realization that the injury bug, which plagued his team throughout the 2016-17 season, had already bit his team in just the third preseason game with a shoulder injury to guard Dante Exum in the first quarter.
The extent of the injury wasn’t known at that moment, but Snyder didn’t look or sound hopeful.
“We can speculate it wasn’t good,” Snyder said. “We know it’s his left shoulder obviously and they’ve taken him to get some imaging to figure out exactly the extent of the injury. Nothing specific as we speak. Hopefully we’ll find out soon.”
Exum’s injury happened late in the first quarter as he drove the baseline and was fouled by the Suns’ TJ Warren. As Exum hit the floor, Warren fell on top of him. Exum writhed around on the floor for a few moments before suddenly jumping up and sprinting the length of the court toward the Jazz locker room, holding his shoulder as if it was dislocated.
The fourth-year Austrailian guard had played well in the Jazz's first two preseason games but could be lost for awhile, depending on the extent of the injury.
Aside from the injury, the Jazz had some things to smile about, particularly the offensive performances of five players who finished in double figures on the night.
One of the big questions coming into this season for the Jazz was who would pick up the scoring slack after the departure of that guy who left for Boston during the summer.
The main answers Friday were Rodney Hood and Alec Burks, who each scored 19 points on a combined 15-of-24 shooting. Utah also got solid good scoring from Derrick Favors (12 points on 6-of-12 shooting) and Joe Johnson (11 points, 4-of-7 shooting).
“I thought Rodney played well,” Snyder said. “He was efficient offensively. Because of his size and he elevates on his shot, he doesn’t need a lot of room to get his shot off. His aggressiveness is something I like and we need.”
As for Burks, Snyder said, “I know who Alec is and he played great tonight. I’m just happy Alec’s out there and playing, it looks like he’s having fun. I just want him to keep getting better. He was good tonight and that was good to see.”
We can’t forget point-a-minute Joel Bolomboy, who for the third straight game, came in and lit it up in his limited minutes. The former Weber State standout scored 12 points in just eight minutes on 4-of-4 shooting, including a 3-pointer and three free throws. That give Bolomboy 30 points in 25 minutes in three games on 10-of-13 shooting, including 4 of 5 from 3-point range.
Those five players combined for a sparkling 29 of 47 from the field, but the rest of the team was only 11 of 50 (22 percent), including just 3 of 16 for rookie Donovan Mitchell. Ricky Rubio was just 2 of 11 from the field, but he finished with 11 points with five free throws to go with his two 3-pointers.
The Suns were led by two reserves, Alex Len and Troy Daniels with 18 points apiece, while another reserve, Tyler Ulis, had 14 and rookie Josh Jackson added 10.
Warren, meanwhile, has his own pain to deal with after leaving the game in the second quarter with stitches in his head and a possible concussion.
The Jazz and Suns will play again Monday night in Phoenix and the Jazz will then head to Los Angeles for a game against the Clippers Monday night.