Taylor Hendricks Gives Jazz Spark In Rough First Quarter Against Hawks

ATLANTA – The Utah Jazz had one of their worst first quarters of the season against the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday.

While the entire team struggled, rookie Taylor Hendricks kept hustling.

After the Jazz went down 12-2, he scored the second bucket with a contested floater from the left block.

rookie/rookie 🪄 𝚖𝚊𝚐𝚒𝚌 🪄 pic.twitter.com/PFKVLuQfYM

— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) February 28, 2024

Just a couple of minutes later, Hendricks drained a top-of-the-key three off a dime from Jordan Clarkson.

The rookie ended the quarter with a team-high five points.

In nine minutes played, he also picked up three rebounds and a steal.

brice
brice
𝘣𝘢𝘣𝘺 pic.twitter.com/piCPpxyfDW

— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) February 28, 2024

Fellow rookies Keyonte George and Brice Sensabaugh also put in some work against the Hawks.

George assisted on first bucket and Sensabaugh drilled a three later in the quarter.

Despite the push from Taylor Hendricks and the other rookies, the Jazz trailed by eight going into the second.

Quin Snyder, Hawks Play Key Role In Jazz Immediate Future

There may be no team that has more influence on the immediate future of the Utah Jazz than Quin Snyder’s Atlanta Hawks.

With the two teams set to face one another on Tuesday night, Jazz fans would be wise to track the Hawks in the standings over the final six weeks of the NBA season.

It will mark the first time the Jazz have faced Snyder since he left the team in the summer of 2022.

a warm welcome back 💟#TakeNote pic.twitter.com/XijOo4n3Ev

— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) February 27, 2024

If the playoffs began today the Jazz would own the 11th-best lottery odds of moving up into the top four spots of the NBA Draft.

RELATED: Quin Snyder ‘Grateful’ For Seven Years With Jazz

But, if they didn’t hit on that 9.4 percent chance of moving up, they’d owe their selection to the Thunder. Enter the Hawks, who at 25-32, own the 10th-worst record in the league.

If Utah falls behind Atlanta in the standings, the odds of keeping their first-round pick would climb to 80.4 percent.

With just 1.5 games separating the Jazz and Hawks, the outcome of Tuesday’s game could be enormously consequential.

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Chandler Holt is a co-host for the Jazz Notes podcast and a Digital Sports Producer for KSLSports.com, specializing in all things basketball and football. Follow Chandler on Twitter @ChandlerHoltKSL or on Threads @chandlerho1t.

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