UPDATE: Jazz forward Joe Ingles fired back at the Warriors:
In regards to lack of nightlife @Joeingles7 offered to buy rental car for Warriors to go to Vegas between games 🙂
— David Locke (@Lockedonsports) May 1, 2017
. @Joeingles7 also mentioned the Warriors have enough money to hire a private jet and fly to LA in between games if they wish
— David Locke (@Lockedonsports) May 1, 2017
Too good.
***
The Golden State Warriors had some time off before a second round opponent emerged, and kept close tabs on the Clippers-Jazz series for one particular reason: which city had the better nightlife.
The Dubs aren’t exactly thrilled about having to spend spending a few evenings in Utah.
New Story: Candid comments on why Warriors preferred Clippers over Jazz, and it had nothing to do with basketball. https://t.co/c8sn4hz1AN
— Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) May 1, 2017
The NBA considers Salt Lake City to be a “security heaven” for its players, which is just another way of calling it unspeakably boring:
“No comparison. There’s no such thing, man,” Warriors’ forward Matt Barnes told ESPN. “There’s no nightlife in Utah. Obviously as players, you want to be able to have a little bit of a nightlife, but the main focus is winning games. Me personally, I want to get out there because I want to beat the Clippers. That’s my former team and my kids are out there. But as far as nightlife, there’s no comparison to nightlife in Utah and L.A.”
The Warriors didn’t get their wish. Utah defeated Los Angeles in seven games. Game 1 between the Warriors and Jazz is Tuesday at Oracle Arena. The defending Western Conference champs land in Utah on Friday and depart late Monday night.
“The problem with Utah is that you’re just sitting there and your mind is like dead, because in L.A., you still got energy for the game,” Andre Iguodala said. “Because you’re in L.A., you’re like, ‘Man, this is just the vibe in L.A.’ but in Utah, it can kind of lull you to sleep. And then you’ve slept too long or I’m bored out of my mind and now you got to try to pump yourself up for the game. You know you’re in the playoffs and you’re supposed to be pumped anyway, but the vibe is just like, ‘Man, let’s just get out of here.'”
“I’m sure it’s probably clubs, but I’ve never been to one in Utah,” Kevin Durant told ESPN. “It’s a few restaurants close to the hotel, but you’re not scattered out. L.A. is just bigger. That’s the only difference. But preparation wise, my approach is the same as in any other city.”
