While undertaking the compilation and editing of this video, I was constantly bombarded with extremely strong Khris Middleton vibes. The crafty moves to get inside, the fearless jumper, the compulsion to embarrass a smaller defender with a turnaround jimbo, those are all things that I have watched Middleton do for some time. And now I see clearly that Rodney “H-Rod” Hood can do all the same things, and do them just as well, while being an unlikely first option.
The TNT broadcast was continuously cutting to Donovan Mitchell’s reactions from the bench while sidelined with a toe injury (I’ve stubbed my toe hundreds of times and you don’t see me taking a break from highlights. Just saying). You could see the tension in Mitchell’s face, because Hood was taking over the team in Mitchell’s absence. Whose team is it? Is it Hood’s or Mitchell’s? It’s not Gobert’s because he doesn’t score enough, but there’s two high-powered shooting guards on the Jazz roster and one will have to subjugate the other one.