Hawks vs. Jazz: When the Lockout-Ugly Turns Pretty

By now, you, the NBA faithful are fully aware of what transpired Sunday night. The Jazz and Hawks played through four overtimes—the first quadruple overtime game since 1997 and only the ninth in league history—before Atlanta was crowned the victor. It was an exhibition unlike any other. Both teams came in searching for an identity, and when the final buzzer sounded, both walked off the court no closer to finding one.

This game was not a source of exemplary execution, but rather a source for defensive lapses, untimely follies and questionable decisions. That said, there was a certain beauty to its ugliness.

All season long, we have watched teams exude the consequences of the numbers-driven lockout. Any given team, on any given night, against any given opponent has been a threat to win. That’s all and well when you’re watching the Bobcats battle Nets, but when it comes to the Bulls facing the Raptors, it’s not a reality many choose to bask in.

But then there are games like these, between two playoff-hopeful teams, desperate for a victory, yet unwilling to run away with it.

In this particular contest, neither team defended particularly well, neither team shot above 45 percent from the field and neither team was able to stave off the effects of fatigue.

The outcome? An eight period thriller that saw numerous last second heroics and a first overtime period in which the two teams combined for a whopping four total points.

That’s not pretty, yet its not ugly either.

The NBA has been lockout-ugly all season, but here, it worked. The lack of a killer instinct ensure that a victory was never out of reach for either team, and the diminutive basketball IQ made for follies that extended the game.

Where else could you see a team put a game-winning opportunity in the hands of a point guard who only made four shots all game? Where else could you see a team barely shooting 30 percent from behind the arc tie the game with a timely three? And most notably, where else could you see only one player score more than 30 points in four overtimes?

Nowhere, not even the NBA. Usually.

This game was a sign of all that was wrong with the NBA—this season—but all that was right with it at the same time. It was exciting, yet it was excitement that was bred by inconsistency.

When the game ends after eight periods of basketball though, the exciting tends to overshadow the inconsistency.

And, you know what, after all that’s happened—the lockout, the injuries and the league-wide struggles that have ensued as a result—this time, that’s okay.