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Eric WoodyardESPN
The streak by Utah Jazz striker Joe Ingles ended in Milwaukee on Friday night after 384 consecutive games in the regular season.
Ingles, who had the longest active streak in the NBA, lost Utah’s 131-118 victory over the Bucks because of his right Achilles pain. He hasn’t lost a game since December 16, 2015, against New Orleans. Including the postseason, the English played 418 consecutive matches.
“I don’t know what the big problem is, honestly,” Ingles told ESPN. “I played because I want to and I’m healthy … If I’m healthy, I’m playing. If the professionals tell me not to play, I’m out. Lucky that lasted.”
Over the years, Ingles played with a sprained middle finger and left ankle, and even after learning that his son, Jacob, was diagnosed with autism.
Jazz coach Quin Snyder, speaking ahead of Friday’s game, said the streak of English is proof of “his toughness”.
“I know he would be playing if he could,” said Snyder. “He often played with pain and probably an injury that he didn’t tell us at times. But, obviously, you lose a player in the short term like Joe, but he’ll be back.
“He just needs to stay healthy and we try to do what we can to make up for not having him. But most of all, it makes you stop for a second and reflect on what a series of consecutive games like this means and what it does says about Joe, his stamina, his commitment, what kind of teammate he is. You pause and reflect for a second and understand why you respect him as you do. “
In his absence from Milwaukee, Jazz ended with 25 points out of 3, the maximum in a game in the franchise’s history. They also became the second team with 25 points out of 3 in a game this season, joining the Bucks, and were the first team in NBA history to have five players each scoring at least four points out of 3 in the same game.
Although Jazz was on the rise, Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell said he noticed a difference with the English not playing.
“It was weird. There were a lot of things that I didn’t realize that Joe realizes until he’s not there,” said Mitchell. “It’s not just the game. We have warm-ups before the game, we have a little handshake. We have introductions, we have a handshake. He’s shouting certain things in the locker room with 20 minutes on his watch … and then, there are just a few things that you lose and then you enter the court and then his presence handling the ball, defending on the perimeter, talking. But I think we have a tendency as a team, when people are out, especially a guy like Joe, it’s the mentality of the next man and everyone was locked up and ready to go. “
With English out, Cory Joseph of Sacramento Kings is the active leader of the NBA with 274 consecutive games coming in on Friday. AC Green holds the NBA all-time record with 1,192 consecutive games.
English, 33, has an average of 10.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 3.4 assists this season for Jazz.
His streak was the longest for a Jazz player since John Stockton, from 1997 to 2003, when he played 442 consecutive games in the regular season.