SALT-MEERSTAD – The smile was contagious.
From a room in the bowels of Vivint Arena, pure joy arose through Jarrell Brantley and permeated through all who saw the youthful smile that spread across his face.
“It’s amazing,” Brantley said, his bright smile widening. “These moments are incredible. Today was incredible. I do not know what tomorrow holds, but today was incredible.”
The forward, who is rarely used, lived the dream he was so close to on Tuesday. He scored 10 points on 4-out-5 shooting and grabbed four rebounds in 22 minutes in Utah’s 106-96 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder.
The Jazz were without Royce O’Neale, Jordan Clarkson and Joe Ingles on Tuesday – they needed someone to give them a chance. They found it in their reserve on a two-way contract.
“I had a feeling, just like this team,” Brantley said when asked if he would expect a big role on Tuesday. “But at the same time, I try to tell myself every day that I’m going to play, even though I know there’s no chance – but just prepare myself mentally to be ready and useful for my team. So I think in many ways prepare I’ve been looking forward to this moment since the start of the season. ‘
Regular NBA rotations are usually 8-10 players deep. For the players on the deep bench, it is difficult to find time on the court. Brantley has played in 17 games this past season, but all have served in the exhausts. A few seconds here, a few minutes there – all unimportant for the result.
Brantley dropped by the Jazz by 9 points at the start of the second quarter on Tuesday. Suddenly he had to play an important role. By the time he clocked out, he had scored a layup, grabbed a rebound and assisted on a Donovan Mitchell 3-ball that raised the Jazz by one. Brantley had a plus point of minus in the first half.
“Most players heard at one point, ‘Keep going, stay ready, you never know when your opportunity is going to present itself,’ and JB did an excellent job of doing just that,” said Jazz Quin Snyder. -coach, said.
And he wanted to show his teammates that he was ready when he was in court. While Oklahoma City fired free throws, Brantley moved on to Mitchell and the two had detailed conversations, pointing to spots on the court.
‘I try to pick Don’s brain as much as I can; and at that time I want to be honest that they feel comfortable understanding that I paid attention to it, ‘Brantley said. “I want them to know that I know their movements and that they can depend on me.”
Georges Niang, who started his first game of the season in the win, knows the happiness Brantley felt on Tuesday. He was in his shoes – on a two-way contract, he was inactive, had little or no time – and he knows how hard it is to put in all the work and rarely see the results.
“The child put in the work and he had to go out there tonight and show it,” Niang said.
Brantley scored 8 of his ten points in the second half, and his 3 points with 8:46 left in the game gave the Jazz their biggest lead of the night at 25.
“I do not want to say that we were not impressed because we know he is capable of it, but we were obviously impressed to see how he does it in a match,” Niang said. “But, more importantly, just very happy for him, because I know what the hassle is of being two-way and getting your chances and wanting to hit a big blow, and he definitely did, so I’m glad he’s there. had to come out and act and play just like him. ‘