Jazz’s Darryn Peterson shows progress, welcomes push from Will Hardy

The Jazz keep losing. Darryn Peterson keeps learning. Friday offered some evidence that the second part is moving in the right direction.

The rookie guard finished with 21 points, five assists, three blocks and two steals against the Mavericks, shooting 6-of-12 and scoring 12 straight points during one stretch.

The Jazz still dropped their seventh straight, falling to 1-8. But for a team investing this much in its future, Peterson giving them something to build on qualifies as welcome news.

“Just a little bit more comfortable,” Peterson told Shreyas Laddha of The Salt Lake Tribune. “Finding some comfort out there. Getting used to it. … Finding my spots, figuring out which shots I like a lot and which shots I want to get to. So, keep finding those, and I need to make them at a high level.”

The No. 2 overall pick has already received plenty of outside evaluations. That comes with the draft position, especially when the losses start piling up. Peterson said he’s keeping his attention elsewhere.

“I don’t even pay attention to it,” he said, via Laddha. “Obviously I see it sometimes, but I [couldn’t] care less what they’re saying. I just focus on my team and trying to win.”

His response to coaching may be just as encouraging as Friday’s numbers. As Laddha detailed, Will Hardy benched Peterson against the Spurs last week and kept him out throughout overtime.

Peterson acknowledged afterward that he had made mistakes on consecutive defensive possessions. He also made it clear he welcomes the accountability.

“I like being coached hard,” Peterson said. “Coach Hardy told me he was going to push me as soon as I got here. So, I know it’s going to have me better in the long run, and I appreciate him for it.”

That’s a useful starting point. The Jazz need Peterson to accept corrections, apply them and keep playing with confidence. Against the Mavericks, they got a look at what can happen when he does. Now they need a win to go with it.

“The perfect answer is next game,” Peterson said. “Flush this one, get ready for Minnesota.”

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