Their two-decade-long playoff streak is now in serious jeopardy, so the level of worry should be high for the Spurs. If they want to make the playoffs, they’ll need to make up five games on the Grizzlies, while also having a better record than both Portland and New Orleans the rest of the way.
Based on how things have been going this season and the overall talent level on both sides, the odds are stacked heavily against them. And they don’t have the pieces for a rebuild just yet.
Utah, on the other hand, is in contention for the #2 seed in the conference, and they’ve been playing good ball of late. Jordan Clarkson has been a perfect addition to the team, scoring at will and making it look as easy as one can.
He is doing just what he did under the radar in Cleveland for the previous year and a half, but now doing it on a team with several All-Stars on it. Utah has got to be happy with the results of the swap for Exum.
The spread for the game has Utah favored by seven points. The over/under is set at 221.5.
Spurs look to begin on high note
DeMar DeRozan and LaMarcus Aldridge have both been playing great ball this year. Neither guy reached the All-Star game, but they are both putting up strong numbers and doing what they can for their team. The issue is that outside the two of them, they don’t really have playmakers, but a team full of role players.
And it consists more of veterans than young guys, who cannot do enough to carry them on off-nights for their stars. It’s been a tough season from the start when they were 5-12, and in a position Gregg Popovich has hardly ever found himself in.
There is still time to turn it around, but it has to start tonight on the road. They’ll need to make sure they’re splashing the threes throughout the game in Salt Lake City.
Jazz try to keep it rolling
Once again, Quin Snyder is doing a wonderful job with his team. They seem to be among the hardest to beat, and they are competitive every night. They have several players who value defense as much as offense, especially their wing players Royce O’Neale and Joe Ingles.
And the best thing for them is that nobody cares about getting stats. Bojan Bogdanovic is averaging 20+ points per game this year, and on the night of his game-winner, he had been 1-7. He allowed other players to lead the offense when he realized it hadn’t been his night. With Gobert, Mitchell, Clarkson and Bojan too, they have options.
This team is tough to take, as they have really built up the culture. They should be good to get another win tonight.
Utah wins at home
The Spurs fall to nine games under .500 as the Jazz do it again.
Free Play: UTAH -7
