When someone writes about the [Utah Jazz](https://www.slcdunk.com) this offseason, especially if they won't he lottery, they will not talk too much about a game like this. It really should be forgotten and removed from the history books if possible.
That said, this was another important loss on the way to a potential #1 pick come May 12th when the lottery selections are made. Utah was clearly outmatched in every way tonight against a [Minnesota Timberwolves](https://www.canishoopus.com) team that is playing at an elite level.
There were some bright spots tonight. Walker Kessler put up some nice numbers with 15 points and 19 rebounds. His percentages would have been better, but Kessler started shooting threes at the end of the game. He went 1/6, but seeing him taking those threes was nice. It would be a huge thing for the Jazz if Kessler could spread the floor like that. With a 1/6 finish from three, that may be more wishful thinking than a possibility. Let’s hope Kessler does more of that as the season goes on. The Jazz are not interested in winning, making it a perfect opportunity for Kessler to work on that aspect of his game as the season progresses.
Collin Sexton had another nice game with 22 points and 4 assists on nice percentages. It’s not always clear with almost everyone on this team if they can impact winning in any way other than scoring, but it’s never a bigger question than with Sexton. He is a nice scorer who could help out a lot of teams with some bench scoring, but that’s about it. He’s not an effective defender at the point of attack, and it’s one of the things that costs Utah games against high-level teams like this one. So that’s good, right? In a way, it’s an interesting dichotomy for Utah because he hurts them against the best teams but he’s good enough against bad teams to get Utah a win on certain nights. Sexton is absolutely the type of player Utah has to be careful with, and they only play on certain nights.
Another bright spot that has been a growing trend is the high-level offense from Kyle Filiopowski. Filipowski has been impressive this season, and tonight was another great night. In this one, off the bench, he shot 4/7 from the field and 2/4 from three. He also grabbed 4 rebounds with 3 assists and 2 steals. To do this against a very good Timberwolves defense is impressive. The biggest question for Filipowski is if he can become a good defender. Down the road, can he develop into a nice defender? If he can, the Jazz have themselves an absolute steal from the draft and someone who could be a big contributor to future contending teams for the Jazz.