Tyrone Corbin’s first ever playoff game as a head coach didn’t go exactly as he would have hoped. The 
Utah Jazz were clearly overmatched by the San Antonio Spurs, and Corbin thinks a lot of that comes down to his coaching and the way he felt during the game.
“I felt fine right up to the beginning of the game, and then the jitters started,” Corbin said. “I started thinking: ‘Are we ready? Did we cover everything? Are the combinations right? Is the lineup right? Do the players understand everything?’ It just started spinning like that.”
“It was all good and then, man, it was a different feel — the building, the crowd, the importance of the game, the importance of every possession and every play, the intensity of the moment,” he said. “You want to give the guys what they need, make sure they are as comfortable as they can be, that they feel good about where we are and just go out and play.”
Obviously a jittery coach isn’t going to be as effective as one who’s calm, collected and thinking clearly. There were some questionable moves made by the Jazz in Game 1. Why didn’t they stick with a bigger lineup when clearly they were having more success?
In Game 2 tonight, Corbin is hoping to be a better leader.
“I’ll have to get better,” he said. “Make sure I’m relaxed.”
We’ll see how he handles the pressure tonight. The AT&T center is undoubtedly going to be rocking just as much as it was in Game 1. The Jazz will need Corbin to step up because he’s going against one of the greatest coaches of all time. If he doesn’t keep it together, the Jazz will definitely be heading back to Utah in an 0-2 hole.
