Back in November, as coach Quin Snyder slid Donovan Mitchell into the starting lineup for Rodney Hood, another player offered to take Hood’s place on the bench.

It took Snyder two more months to take Joe Ingles up on his offer. Against the New York Knicks on Friday night, for the first time all season, Ingles came off the bench.

The shakeup came as Rudy Gobert, finally healthy for the first time since December, re-entered the starting lineup and thus took the spotlight. But it was a noticeable change — one that Snyder played down prior to tipoff.

“I think we haven’t started games as well as I hope we can,” he said. “It’s nothing magical. As I’ve said before, I think too much is made of starting lineups in general. But in this case, that’s what we’re gonna do.”

Prior to Friday night, Ingles (9.5 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 4.3 apg) was the only Jazz player to start every game this season. He’s been in Utah’s starting lineup since last April, and started every playoff game in 2017. Hood last started two games when Donovan Mitchell was injured last month, but hadn’t been a regular starter since Nov. 7.

Slow starts have been an issue for the Jazz. The team averages a three-point deficit after the first quarter. For at least one night, the change had the desired effect: After the first quarter, the Jazz led 25-22 and Hood had 7 points.

Ingles is also in a slump: He had hit only 38.8 percent from the field in his previous 13 games, and his 3-point percentage — which was No. 3 in the league last season — dropped to 32.1 percent in that same stretch.

Sometimes his reluctance to shoot has been a point of tension: Snyder acknowledged that he and Ingles shouted at each other in Utah’s loss to Charlotte, “which is a good sign of a healthy relationship.” But Snyder insisted that the change wasn’t meant to punish Ingles, and that he thought the 30-year-old vet (who just signed a $52 million contract with the Jazz this offseason) would be willing to work with the change.

“I wasn’t coming to Joe with a huge sacrifice,” Snyder said. “The way he’s wired, he just wants to win. He wants to play. I feel like this is the right thing for the team at this point. Joe is great.”

Porzingis not sweating All-Star snub



Averaging 23.4 points, a league-leading 2.4 blocks and he’s not an All-Star starter?

New York’s Kristaps Porzingis probably has a right to feel snubbed after All-Star votes tabbed Philadelphia center Joel Embiid in over him. But the player known as the Unicorn didn’t spend too much time sounding off on the issue.

“Players know,” he told media at Friday’s shootaround. “That’s all I’m going to say.”

The Latvian is enjoying the best season of his career in his 3rd year in the NBA. Aside from leading the Knicks in scoring, he’s also been a defensive presence around the rim. He showed that prowess early against Utah on Friday night with a first-quarter block against Gobert.

But Porzingis still can be voted a reserve by coaches. Reserves will be announced early next week.

“We’ll see,” he said. “I hope so. In my mind, I deserve it.”

Briefly