Forrest Ready For Expanded Role Against Portland | Utah Jazz

Entering the season, it was known that Utah had arguably the deepest set of guards in the NBA. 

Donovan Mitchell was a budding superstar while his starting backcourt mate Mike Conley joined him on the all-star team last year. Jordan Clarkson was named the NBA’s sixth man of the year, while Joe Ingles finished as runner-up for the award. 

With that kind of talent ahead of him, seeing the court consistently would be a tall task for then-rookie Trent Forrest. Coming out of Florida State, Forrest was known as a defensive stopper with an evolving offensive game, which is why he went undrafted before signing a two-way contract with the Jazz. 

He appeared in 30 games of last season’s Covid-shortened year, averaging 10 minutes per game. But when Conley went down late in the year with an injury, Forrest rose in the depth chart and averaged 18.5 minutes over a 10-game span. 

Those were big-time minutes as he earned the trust of his teammates and head coach Quin Snyder, setting the stage for what could be a more-involved role this season. Despite the Jazz returning all four guards from last season, Forrest was again ready when called upon on Monday night against San Antonio.

https://t.co/fVyBnHGwn3

With great performances by @Joeingles7 and @JordanClarksons, it was @TForrest_11 who provided invaluable minutes as the @utahjazz beat the @spurs 110-104 for their seventh consecutive road win#TakeNote

— Ryan Kostecka (@Ryan_Kostecka) December 28, 2021

With Mitchell out on Monday night against San Antonio, Forrest became the second guard off the bench and finished with a season-high 20 minutes. Although he didn’t score in the game, he was very effective as his defense thrived in limiting the Spurs to a poor shooting night. 

“Defensively, I just want him to keep doing what he’s doing,” Snyder said of Forrest. “I mean, he’s unique defensively with his length and also with his instincts.”

Where Forrest knows he needs to improve, and where Snyder and his teammates are constantly pushing him to be better, comes on the other end of the court. Offensively Forrest has all of the skills to be a solid contributor, but he lacks the confidence in doing so — which is why Mitchell and Clarkson are constantly in his ear about taking the open shot.

“We do trust to make the right plays and finish at the rim,” Clarkson said. “He does a lot for us on defense. He does a lot for us offensively, running the team. But yeah, sometimes he’s got to keep the defense honest, shoot those floaters and keep continuing to play hard.”

Snyder understands the difficulties a young guard has coming into the league, especially when trying to evolve his game and contribute to a veteran team with championship aspirations in just limited minutes.

“Like any young player, there’s certain things that you want to work on that are going to impact your performance in the role that you have currently,” Snyder said. “And then there’s other things that you continue to work on, to continue to develop that are things that maybe you’re not asked to do in the moment but are also going to be important.”

Forrest will have the opportunity to take another step forward offensively when Utah travels to Portland to face Damian Lillard and the Blazers on Wednesday night. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. MST.

STATS
Utah (24-9, 11-3 away / No. 3 Western Conference)
Offense
*115.8 Points Per Game (No. 1 in NBA)
*116.6 Offensive Rating (No. 1 in NBA)

Defense
*105.6 Points Per Game (No. 7 in NBA)
*106.6 Defensive Rating (No. 6 in NBA)

*Rudy Gobert: 15.4 points / 14.9 rebounds / 2.3 blocks / 71.3% shooting 
*Bojan Bogdanovic: 17.4 points / 3.7 rebounds / 43.7% 3P-territory
*Mike Conley: 14.1 points / 5.4 assists / 44.3% 3P-territory
*Jordan Clarkson: 14.4 points / 3.4 rebounds / 2.3 assists / 25.1 minutes

Portland Trailblazers (13-20, 11-8 home / No. 12 Western Conference)
Offense
*108.4 Points Per Game (No. 13 in NBA)
*109.6 Offensive Rating (No. 16 in NBA)

Defense
*111.7 Points Per Game (No. 26 in NBA)
*109.6 Defensive Rating (No. 28 in NBA)

*Damian Lillard: 23.9 points / 7.4 assists / 4.1 rebounds / 2.0 steals
*Norman Powell: 17.9 points / 40.3% 3P-territory
*Anfernee Simons: 12.0 points / 37.6% 3P-territory

MATCHUP TO WATCH
*Royce O’Neale vs. Damian Lillard
— With Portland severely hampered by health and safety protocols and injuries, almost all of the scoring will fall onto the shoulders of Lillard. When hot and in zone, he’s one of the most dangerous players in the league and capable of winning a game by himself. That’s why it’ll be up to O’Neale, Utah’s best perimeter defender, to make life extremely difficult for him. If O’Neale can tire Lillard out and make it difficult for him to score, Utah should extend its road winning streak to eight games.

INJURY REPORT
Utah
OUT — Udoka Azubuike (right ankle sprain)
OUT — Donovan Mitchell (left low back strain)
QUESTIONABLE — Malik Fitts (right shoulder sprain)

Portland
OUT — Keljin Blevins (Health and Safety Protocols)
OUT — Robert Covington (Health and Safety Protocols)
OUT — CJ McCollum (right lung pneumothorax)
OUT — Ben McLemore (Health and Safety Protocols
OUT — Jusuf Nurkic (Health and Safety Protocols)
OUT — Dennis Smith Jr. (Health and Safety Protocols)
OUT — Trendon Watford (Health and Safety Protocols)
OUT — Cody Zeller (Health and Safety Protocols)

BROADCAST INFORMATION
Time: 8:00 p.m. MST
Location: Moda Center / Portland, OR
TV: AT&T SportsNet
Radio: 1280 The Zone