Inside The Jazz

Collin Sexton Reacts to Will Hardy's Viral Timeout in Jazz-Lakers

The Utah Jazz guard sounds off on Sunday's loss vs. the Los Angeles Lakers.

Jared Koch

Dec 1, 2024; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Utah Jazz guard Collin Sexton (2) reacts after getting blocked against the Los Angeles Lakers during the second half at the Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Creveling-Imagn Images
Dec 1, 2024; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Utah Jazz guard Collin Sexton (2) reacts after getting blocked against the Los Angeles Lakers during the second half at the Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Creveling-Imagn Images / Christopher Creveling-Imagn Images
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The Utah Jazz came up short in a narrow 104-105 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday night during the second leg of a back-to-back during a contest that came down to the final seconds, and one that ended with some drama due to a controversial timeout by Will Hardy.

With 2.1 seconds to go in the contest, as Collin Sexton was driving to the rim for an attempt at a game-winning basket, Hardy was awarded a late final timeout to stop the play dead, despite Sexton's successful basket. The Jazz then were unable to get a shot up in the remaining time following the timeout, eventually leading to their eighth loss in nine games.

After the loss, Sexton hit the podium to talk a bit about his thoughts for the final possession and potential game-winning shot.

"It could've went either way," Sexton said. "At the end of the day, coach felt like I was stuck a little bit and he called it. It's just one of those 'if it goes in, good, but if it doesn't, ah, I should've called a timeout.' I don't blame him at all for calling it. At the end, they switched it up especially, and we weren't able to get a shot off at the end. That's the toughest part."

"They made a different adjustment than we thought coming out, Sexton continued. "We didn't counter it fast enough, and we didn't get a shot off. That's all it was. It was going to be a great coaching call, but they sniffed it out a little bit. It's all good."

Sexton finished the game with a solid performance on both ends with 15 points, three rebounds, and four assists alongside a steal and a block. Of course, the night would be a bit sweeter had things ended with a game-sealing layup, but fate failed to fall in the Jazz's direction.

"During the moment, it's one of those times where you get upset, but it's just like anything," Sexton said. "Coach might pull me out of the game, scream and yell at me, and after the game he lets me know why he was screaming at me. It's not coming from a bad place. At the end of the day, he was doing what was best for the team, and he felt like he was going to be able to get us a better shot than what we did. I don't put no fault or no blame... You live and you learn. It happens."

Sexton and the Jazz will have their next opportunity to get back on the winning side of things in a tough Tuesday night road battle vs. the Oklahoma City Thunder.

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Jared Koch
JARED KOCH

Jared Koch is the Associate Editor of The Frozen Rope — SI.com's team website covering the Utah Jazz. He's covered the NBA and NFL for the past two years, also being the Managing Editor of Inside The Kings — SI.com's team website covering the Sacramento Kings.

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