Does the Whistle Help Utah at Home?

Denver's George Karl had an interesting claim in a Chris Tomasson Pro Basketball News piece on his theory as to why the Jazz dominate in Utah and stink the road: home cooking. The idea would be that the raucous Energy Solutions Arena mixed with Jerry Sloan's intimidating bark might serve to push refs toward calling a Utah-style game in S.L.C., while different circumstances lend to different results elsewhere.

Does the whistle explain Utah's home court advantage?

In a word, yes ... but not necessarily in the way you think. Utah doesn't really get more whistles at home -- the Jazz earn 0.35 FTAs per FGA at home, and 0.34 FTAs per FGA on the road. That's a minor discrepancy. The key is the Jazz are called for less fouls at home than on the road.

In Salt Lake, opponents draw 0.29 FTAs per FGA. In their own homes against the Jazz, these teams draw 0.38 FTAs per FGA. In a standard game, that's the difference between 23 FTAs in S.L.C. and 30 FTAs away from Utah. That's huge!

The home court benefit as it pertains to the whistle for the Jazz is that the refs apparently let contact go on the defensive end. In another arenas, the refs aren't looking the other way. Is this something the Jazz can fix, perhaps by being a bit more prudent with their fouls on the road? Or will that just turn into restrained aggression that results in easier shots for the opponents? We'll never find out, because Sloan isn't telling any sentient being to be softer, that's for sure.