Welcome to the NBA Hangover. We jot down NBA stuff mostly from last night that we want to talk about. Check it out.
The Utah Jazz have won 14 of their last 15 games and have risen to third in the Western Conference.
(PHOTO CREDIT: Nick Wass/AP.)
I made the Utah Jazz my main profile on Christmas Eve because I noticed that they were winning games quietly.
Well, they’re still 6th in the West but they had actually been winning some games quietly. They took advantage of an extremely soft schedule and won the games that they were supposed to (Wolves, Warriors, Magic, Hawks, Hornets). And they came very close to winning a game in Miami, which, like I said, is a very tough one.
They had won 5 straight games before succumbing on the road against the Miami Heat. Then I said this later on in my mesmerizing column:
So I’m sort of watching out for them… and 8 of their next 9 games are against teams under .500.
The one that was only over .500? The Clippers. And they handled them. So guess what? They took care of business and the Utah Jazz have won 9 games in a row. You just knew they were going to do something with that type of schedule.
In that same Chrismas Eve entry, they made a deal to get Jordan Clarkson. It was a move to help the bench get some scoring. They moved up a bit on bench scoring from 29th to 26th this season (29.7 bench points per game) but in that 9-game win streak, the bench has averaged 39.1 points per. It also got an uptick in production from guys like Georges Niang, Emmanual Mudiay, and Tony Bradley.
I know people love to complain about the soft schedule but come on. People would criticize them even worse if they DIDN’T win as much. As it is, they took care of business. People just want to complain because they’re miserable with their lives or something. As of now, the Jazz have gone up to 3rd place in the West and is tied with the second-best team, Denver, at 27-12 (tiebreaker stuff put Denver at #2).
They still have a few more winnable games to go up even further as they have games on the road against Brooklyn and New Orleans before going home to face Sacramento. After the Kings, they have the Pacers at home, which would be their first game against a team over .500 since beating the Clippers. That should be a test.
But they have now erased the disappointment from early in the season. Their defense continues to play well. Their offense is coming along. Donovan Mitchell doesn’t look as overwhelmed. Rudy Gobert continues to give rim protection. The adjustment to put Joe Ingles back with the starters has worked wonders. Clarkson is doing what he’s supposed to do from the bench. If they could get Mike Conley back healthy, that would be fantastic for them.
If they win a few games against the upper tier then, yes, consider them major contenders. Just like what we thought they were supposed to be in the first place.
Bullet Passes
Kyrie Irving is back! He went 10 for 11 and 21 points in his first game back and the Nets blew out the Hawks.
The Spurs, uh, upset the Raptors in Toronto after the champs blew an 18-point lead. But the good long-term news for them is that Pascal Siakam and Norman Powell are back.
We’re talking about hot teams, right? How about the Memphis Grizzlies, who have won 5 straight games to claim the #8 seed? They beat the Clippers, Suns, Wolves, Spurs, and Warriors during that streak. Considering where most pegged the Grizz, that’s an impressive run for them.
It’s coming up again. After their loss to the Nuggets, the Clippers are getting a lot of questions about how good they are. I’m staying firm that they’re going to be okay. Paul George and Kawhi Leonard have only played 18 games together and the Clips are 14-4 in those games.
The continuity is worrisome, of course. But the Clippers are right in the mix in the battle for #2 in the West. I would only get stressed if they go on an extended swoon.
Break out those Knicks, man. What an upset win against the Heat.
The Scoreboard
MIA 121 (27-12) @ NY 124 (11-29)
UTA 127 (27-12) @ WAS 116 (13-26)
ATL 86 (8-32) @ BRK 108 (18-20)
SA 105 (17-21) @ TOR 104 (25-14)
GS 102 (9-32) @ MEM 122 (18-22)
LAC 104 (27-13) @ DEN 114 (27-12)
CHA 92 (15-27) @ PHX 100 (16-23)
Watch This Play
DeMar DeRozan returns to DeNorth of DeBorder to DeVastate DeRaptors’ Chris Boucher.
(VIDEO CREDIT: Bleacher Report.)
I think Boucher had an out-of-body experience after he got demolished on that slam by DeRozan. What a homecoming of sorts for the former Raptor great DeMar DeRozan.
Rey-Rey is on Twitter at @TheNoLookPass.
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