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Utah Jazz Week Fourteen Outlook, Predictions

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 6:48 p.m. ET

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Fansided, Jared Woodcox/FanSided via Purple and Blues

The Utah Jazz have played phenomenally over the past two weeks to win six straight games, but they’ll be hard-pressed to keep that streak alive with a tough fourteenth week of NBA action.

It was another fantastic week for the Utah Jazz as they went a perfect 3-0 for the second time in a row, increasing their win streak to six straight and improving their overall record to an impressive 29-16. That mark currently has them tied for fourth place in the West with the Los Angeles Clippers.

After Utah’s phenomenal performances in Week 12, I had projected that Utah would go undefeated in Week 13 and they did just that. Therefore, for those of you keeping track, I went 3-0 as well and was able to elevate my projections record to 28-17. Not only that, but I managed an impressive personal feat by predicting the exact score of Utah’s 106-101 win against the Suns.

But enough patting myself on the back, let’s get back to Jazz basketball. As much as I’d love to see Utah continue to extend their streak with another undefeated week, they’ll be in for a much tougher task this time around.

They begin the week on Monday by hosting Oklahoma City, a team they beat handily in the first meeting earlier in the season, but they’ll have to deal with a Russell Westbrook who was recently snubbed from the All-Star starters and a Thunder team that will be coming in off of four days rest.

From there, they’ll head out the very next night for a single game on the road against the Denver Nuggets in what will be Utah’s fourth game in just five days. Although the Jazz are a much more talented team than Denver, the Nuggets have played well enough to move into eighth place in the West and with their fast-paced offense, will be a dangerous opponent for the fatigued Jazz.

Finally, they’ll end the week by starting a four-game home stand where they’ll host the Lakers on Thursday and the Grizzlies on Saturday. That game against the Grizzlies could be a thriller as the Jazz currently trail the season series 2-1 and could very much use a win that could hold great playoff implications.

It wasn’t long ago that Utah defeated both OKC and Memphis in the same week in mid-December, so hopefully they can replicate that once again.

Yet, with a combination of tough opponents and little rest between games this week, the Jazz will be in for quite a challenge if they hope to elevate their current win streak above six games.

Dec 14, 2016; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert (27) defends against Oklahoma City Thunder center Steven Adams (12) during the second half at Vivint Smart Home Arena. The Jazz won 109-89. Mandatory Credit: Russ Isabella-USA TODAY Sports

1/23 Utah vs. Oklahoma City

7:00 pm MT – Root Sports/League Pass

Opponent record: 25-19

Season series: Jazz lead 1-0

The Jazz played incredibly well the last time the Oklahoma City Thunder came to town as they put up an impressive 109-89 win, despite not having George Hill in action to check Russell Westbrook.

Shelvin Mack and Dante Exum, who both ironically have not found themselves in the rotation of late, did a commendable job of forcing the Thunder star into a dismal 7-of-25 shooting performance.

With George Hill back in the mix, one would expect that the Jazz would be able to make life even more difficult for him, but it may not be that easy. As previously mentioned, the Thunder will be well-rested and Westbrook will likely be coming in with a major chip on his shoulder.

For a more in-depth look of what the Jazz will have to do to come out victorious, be sure to check out my most recent Keys to the Game previewing Monday’s match-up.

To summarize what I detailed there, while I think this game will be a much tighter contest than the last time Oklahoma City came to town, based largely on the fact that outside of Westbrook the Thunder don’t have a ton of guys that can hurt the Jazz, Utah’s exceptional defense should be able to slow him down and therefore effectively shut down the team as a whole.

Therefore, I’m pinning the Jazz as narrow winners in this one, which will see their winning streak increase to seven straight games.

My Prediction: Jazz Win

Final Score: Utah 109, Oklahoma City 102

Dec 3, 2016; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray (27) tries to get past Utah Jazz forward Joe Ingles (2) and guard Dante Exum (11) in the second quarter at Vivint Smart Home Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Swinger-USA TODAY Sports

1/24 Utah at Denver

7:00 pm MT – Root Sports/League Pass

Opponent record: 18-25

Season series: Jazz lead 2-1

I’m not sure which is more surprising, the fact that the Denver Nuggets have played well enough this season to be in eighth place in the Western Conference or the fact that the teams below the seventh seed in the West are all so bad that Denver is able to be in the spot they are with just an 18-25 record.

To put that in context, Denver would be in 11th place in the Eastern Conference with their current record. Granted, seeds 1-7 in the West make for tougher foes than 1-7 in the East, but it’s still pretty shocking that the bottom half of the West has been so disappointing this season (I’m looking at you, Portland!).

Nevertheless, records and conference standings aside, this is a Nuggets team that simply cannot be overlooked. They’re an up-tempo squad that is very athletic and capable of surprising any team on any given night.

They certainly did so earlier in the season when they bested the Jazz in Denver by a score of 105-91. Luckily, however, Utah was able to bounce back and win two games in a row against the Nuggets in Salt Lake City.

This game, however, could be a tough one as the Jazz will be playing not only on the second night of a back-to-back but also in their fourth game in five days, while Denver will be coming in off a day of rest.

Although Utah is more than capable of beating Denver on a level playing field and outmatches the Nuggets roster in nearly every way, I have a feeling that this game may very well turn out to be what many would call a “schedule loss” where the Jazz fall more due to a tough schedule than because of the strength of their opponent.

Especially with this game being played on the Nuggets’ home court, I wouldn’t be surprised to see them push the pace early and often on the Jazz, then to see tired legs bring Utah down in the final period. The Jazz had to go down to the wire in both of their road games this past week against subpar opponents, and if they have any sort of early struggles against Denver, I’ll have a hard time believing that they’ll have enough gas to grind out a late comeback in this one.

Hopefully they prove me wrong, but because of the rough schedule leading up to this lone road game of the week, I’m going to pin the Nuggets as winners by a narrow margin.

My Prediction: Nuggets Win

Final Score: Denver 112, Utah 106

Dec 27, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Utah Jazz forward Joe Johnson (right) dribbles the basketball against Los Angeles Lakers forward Brandon Ingram (14) during the fourth quarter at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports

1/26 Utah vs. Los Angeles

8:30 pm MT – TNT

Opponent record: 16-32

Season series: Jazz lead 3-0

Despite getting off to a surprising 10-10 start this season, the Lakers have been absolutely dismal ever since, going 6-22 after their initial hot start. That’s a .214 win percentage over their last 28 games, which has dropped their overall percentage to just .333, the worst in the Western Conference and second to only the Brooklyn Nets for worst in the NBA.

And if they hadn’t already hit rock bottom, they most certainly did on Sunday as they suffered the worst loss in franchise history, falling 122-73 to a Dallas Mavericks team that finds themselves just two spots above the Lakers in the Western Conference standings. Ironically, on the 11th anniversary of Kobe Bryant’s 81-point game, the now hapless Lakers managed to only muster 73 points.

Thus the one-time media darlings of earlier in the season have fallen hard on their face as we near the All-Star break, which should put the Jazz in a great spot to sweep the season series 4-0.

It will also be an exciting night as the the NBA All-Star reserves will be announced on TNT after which the Jazz will play on the national stage. Depending on the results of the announcements, one or both of Gordon Hayward and Rudy Gobert could potentially be coming into this game with a chip on their shoulder and plenty to prove.

If either one is left off that reserve list (which is quite likely to happen given Utah’s small market status and under-the-radar success this season) then I feel really bad for the opposing players that have to match-up against either of them as they could very well be in for a long night.

But it will be great for the up-and-coming Jazz to get some national exposure on a night that many will likely tune in to learn who the final 2017 All-Stars will be. Last time Utah played on the national stage, they walloped the Pistons 110-77 on ESPN and I expect a similar result against a puttering Lakers team.

My Prediction: Jazz Win

Final Score: Utah 116, Los Angeles 89

Dec 18, 2016; Memphis, TN, USA; Memphis Grizzlies center Marc Gasol (33) shoots against Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert (27) and Utah Jazz forward Derrick Favors (15) during the second half at FedExForum. the Utah Jazz defeat the Memphis Grizzlies 82-73. Mandatory Credit: Justin Ford-USA TODAY Sports

1/28 Utah vs. Memphis

7:00 pm MT – Root Sports/League Pass

Opponent record: 26-20

Season series: Grizzlies lead 2-1

While Monday’s game against Oklahoma City will undoubtedly be an exciting and key game for the Jazz, there’s a good chance that this final contest could be the showdown of the week. Although Utah currently enjoys a comfortable 3.5-game lead over Memphis, these two teams have been neck and neck all season in the standings and with future playoff implications potentially on the line, it will be important for Utah to tie up the season series.

All three contests between these two teams have been exactly what you would expect from a Jazz-Grizzlies match-up – a hard-nosed, grind-it-out affair. Each one has been closely contested and with this being a potential first-round playoff preview, you can bet that both teams will bring their A-game and look to prove themselves.

Last time Utah played the Grizzlies, it was in the second night of a back-to-back and the final game of a tough five-game road trip and the Jazz simply could not find their shot. The script will be reversed this time around, however, as it will be Memphis that comes in on a back-to-back and in the middle of a road trip to play the hard-nosed Jazz at Vivint Smart Home Arena.

I expect this one to once again be a slug-fest, but for the Utah Jazz to prevail to knot up the series at two games apiece. It certainly won’t be an easy win (it never is against Memphis), but given the Grizzlies’ tough schedule going into the game and their struggles of late (they’ve lost four of their last six) I predict the Jazz will take care of business on their home court and come away with a hard-fought victory.

My Prediction: Jazz Win

Final Score: Utah 86, Memphis 81

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So while it’s been nice to see Utah put up six straight wins, that run will be very much on the line right off the bat as they take on a solid Thunder team on Monday then have to slog through some tough opponents and a rough schedule to finish off the week.

While Utah could very well defeat the Nuggets despite my prediction, and the games against the Grizzlies and Thunder could go either way, considering all the factors I mentioned, but also given how well the Jazz have been playing, I like their chances of winning at least two of those three.

Then, they should very well be able to pick up a win over the Lakers, so I’m confidently pinning Utah to go 3-1 on the week. This would put them comfortably over 30 wins, and by beating both the Grizzlies and Thunder, who are the two teams looming directly below them in the standings, the Jazz would have even more distance between them in the standings as they battle to earn home court in the first round of the playoffs.

All stats courtesy of NBA.com

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