The Utah Jazz lived very terrifying moments on Tuesday when they were flying to Memphis to play the Grizzlies on Wednesday. Things quickly got out of control when the plane hit a flock of birds, which cause an engine problem and a lot of fears in the passengers.
They had to re-route and after an emergency landing, everybody was fine. When you talk about it, it looks like it was nothing but that’s not how the players felt that moment. In fact, they knew things were serious and from the moment they hit the birds, everybody in the plane knew something was very wrong. The situation was so heavy that even some players started texting their loved ones, saying goodbyes in the uncertainty of the moment.
“For a good 10 or 15 minutes, I think all of us on that flight were questioning if we were going to be here today,” Mike Conley told reporters on Wednesday, via CNN. “That’s how serious it was for us. I can’t speak for everybody, but I know that guys were trying to text family just in case, you know? It was that kind of situation.”
Jordan Clarkson also reflected on the moment, saying they were just texting their loved ones, thinking it was the end for them and the rest of the team.
“It was one of those flights where you were sending out texts. I know you’ve seen on a movie when a plane is about to crash. It got to that point where we were all in the plane like, ‘This might be really the end.’ I mean, it was a crazy situation.”
Clarkson also spoke about Donovan Mitchell, who missed the game vs. the Grizzlies due to ‘personal reasons.’ The Sixth Man of the Year candidate said that he completely understands Mitchell and supported his decision.
Jordan Clarkson: "It was a crazy situation. I understand fully why [Donovan Mitchell] didn't come."
Mitchell didn't fly to Memphis for tonight's game due to "personal reasons" after the Jazz's flight was forced to make an emergency landing shortly after takeoff.
— Tim MacMahon (@espn_macmahon) April 1, 2021
For about 5 to 10 minutes, nobody in the plane knew what was going on and if their lives were going to end. Conley revealed that it took some time for the pilot to get things back on track and head back to the airport.
“The plane immediately started to bounce and just started tilting to the left,” he said. “People in the back of the plane said they saw flames. We started looking down and wondering what just happened. Nobody knows. Everybody’s just quiet. We were just in shock.
“It took the pilots probably five to 10 minutes, probably about 10 minutes, to go through everything, go through their checks and get back to us and let us know what was going on. Because it was obvious that something was really wrong with the plane. It felt like the plane was breaking apart in midair. For five or 10 minutes, it felt like complete helplessness.
“We’re thankful it wasn’t as serious as it could have been, but it was scary.”
The Jazz ultimately made it to Memphis, where they played the Grizzlies and won, 107-111. Fortunately, nothing serious happened and everybody is safe now. Once you live these situations, your perspective on life changes, and these players aren’t definitely the same after this incident.
