Q: Would you rather lose while trying to win, or win while trying to lose? \u2013 Aram, Raleigh, N.C.<\/p>\n
A: What an odd, weird, bizarro night it was on Monday night at Kaseya Center. The Utah Jazz simply cannot afford to win too many more games or their first-round pick could wind up going where so many quality NBA first-round picks have gone in recent years \u2013 to the Oklahoma City Thunder. (You can find those details here, in Item No. 2<\/a>.) And on the other side is the reality that this Heat team simply does not have the depth to win while Norman Powell, Tyler Herro and Pelle Larsson are sidelined and when Kel\u2019el Ware is in foul trouble. So the quest for defeat against an unwinnable force. Yes, this is what the NBA has come down to: How low can you go? The Heat on Monday showed just how low, making this worse than the losses to the Pacers and the Kings, because on those nights, Sacramento and Indiana were trying. This was not a night Erik Spoelstra could say his team had enough. It clearly did not.<\/p>\n Q: I don\u2019t know which is more pathetic, the Heat losing the game or the Jazz trying to lose it. \u2013 Ray, Deerfield Beach.<\/p>\n A: No, this will not go into any time capsule. But the sheer notion of what the Jazz have done the past two games is remarkable that it is allowed by the NBA. This is not competition; this is manipulation. To their credit, the Orlando Magic took the gift from the Jazz on Saturday night. In turn, the Heat fumbled it away. So when keeping an eye on the Heat and Magic in the standings, keep in mind what each team did in a three-day span in February against the Jazz.<\/p>\n